#A decisions literally no employee enjoys

[sweetenby]

Literally why does the sliding scale of jobs go like

is super cool and fulfilling -> makes you want to chew drywall

Pays enough to live off of <- pays pebbles

Only as the top slider moves one way the bottom slider moves the opposite

#Idk if this sentence makes sense #But literally having a moment at my job where it's like #You can work at this super super cool museum and learn all kinds of hands on historical skills #That scratch your brain in such a good way bc you're learning actual practical creation #And you can fulfill your life long dream of bring an educator while spending time in a beautiful outdoor space #And filling your social meter so you don't go crazy from isolation #But also it pays 14 dollars an hour and you're not allowed to work over 30 hours a week #But also you love your coworkers and you've made so many coolfriends there #But also your bosses are out of touch assholes who you actively disagree with the philosophy they want your department to implement #Also upper management is even more out of touch #And making some of the worst possible decisions for management and trying to turn the education but in a fun way museum to a theme park #A decisions literally no employee enjoys #Also they're just not training ppl very good anymore so the information the MUSEUM is putting out there is declining in quality!!! #Which is so fucking worrying

[elderscrollsconceptart]

This will be a long post but I've been thinking about this since last night.

I get a pit in my stomach when I think about the new Fallout TV show and the chance TES may get a show if the Fallout show is super successful.

I've been hearing the show has been pretty good, but ive also heard some grim rumblings and worries about certain directions Bethesda/Amazon are taking lore-wise in the Fallout show. Apparently Todd has said everything in the show is canon.

I've not watched it myself as I'm not a huge TV watcher in general, but I don't know if I want to see Bethesda or an outside studio make massive changes to TES lore which affect both past and future installments in TES purely for the sake of "making good TV".

I am most certainly not a "modern Bethesda" hater or of the opinion that modern TES/Fallout games are bad. I pretty much love them all. (I even enjoyed Starfield, huge glaring flaws and all!)

I genuinely believe they are trying their best to make fun games. I also understand they have had a lot of struggles over the past decade+, particularly in company direction and budgeting of necessary resources (pre-Microsoft acquisition).

The old Zenimax upper management was awful (Trumps brother was literally on the Zenimax board of Directors before he died). And infamously refused budget allocations towards serious game engine improvements that were desperately needed. Bethesda has had alot of struggles but I feel they have always tried to do the best they can, even if the final result is middling.

I am also not a Todd hater. Even if he's not necessarily the best game designer, he has a lot of heart and passion and seems to genuinely care about Bethesda and its employees. I am glad he seems to have a genuinely good relationship with Microsoft and I have high hopes for Bethesda's future in the long term.

All that said, there are just certain changes that can happen when "Hollywood comes knocking" per se., even if most of the main creative decisions still come from Bethesda. TV shows can be fantastic and lauded with praise but if they are based on an established property with established lore, they often ultimately go in creative directions which negates the lore and other non-TV entries in the series.

Just look at GOT. It started off amazingly, and GRR Martin had a direct hand in all the early series. It was the best show on TV until suddenly GRR was no longer involved directly and the show runners started making their own decisions. They started ignoring established lore and making "changes and improvements" which nose dived the series by the end.

Perhaps I am paranoid, but I can see something similar happening to Fallout if the show is big and keeps getting new series. Furthermore, I hold a deep dread that TES may be next. Just think, how many people talk about GOT anymore? How many people are hyped for the next book(s) in the series? The books didn't get bad right? Only the TV show did.

But that's my point. If Fallout or TES have these big smash initial hits on TV but begin to fail after a while, it damages the series as a whole, not just the TV show. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see TES/Fallout TV shows be nothing but great. I just worry as I've been hearing of major major lore changes being made by the Fallout show. These changes are irrevocable and utterly change the lore of that series, and not necessarily for the better. I'll try to refrain from further judgment on that, but I'll leave with this question:

What if TES had a super quality and popular TV show which negated large parts of pre-Oblivion lore? Suddenly, due to the show, innumerable people/places/things which were iconic to the TES series were no longer around or perhaps not even canon anymore? What if those things were just lost or written off for the sake of a TV show?

As a fan of TES, and maybe even of that TV show, how would that make you feel?

I'm am not trying to stir controversy here, but I think we as a fandom need to have more public discussions about this. We also need to be prepared to not dump on any new changes to the series or lore without giving them a fair shake. Something being "new and different" does mean its awful. Changes can be good or bad but they must be carefully considered.

I hope this new Fallout show's premiere will provide us a good chance to consider the future of TES media and lore outside the games before any changes are announced or made.

#the elder scrolls #tes #television #fallout #fallout tv show #elder scrolls tv show #tesblr #worries

[rentalboos]

Watcher has lost almost 100 thousand subscribers

Hi babygirl, thank you for your 6 new messages, I love that you think my opinion is this important, though I genuinely don't quite get it. I'm not even a Watcher fanaccount, like, I have maybe two followers who even know the channel. What beef do you have with me lmao Since you're so interested in it though, I'm going to give it to you! FOR FREE! Since that's so important to you!

Here's the tldr: You're on anon sending hate, so you already know you're in the wrong and everyone else knows it too!

Great. Now that that's covered, here we GO! My precious opinion that you value so much! For free:

I'm sorry it offends you that I have the 5,99 to pay them and am doing it, but like. Do you do this with everyone? Do you go into people's DMs (no of course not, you only hate anonymously, wonder why that is!) to yell at them about subscribing to Twitch streams? Spotify? Youtube membership? Patreons?

What about this offends you so? That a bunch of youtubers had to make a tough choice between "we have to stop creating the art we want" and "we could try and keep creating the art we want, but we'll need to get paid for it" and chose to try and get paid for it? Is the offense, to you personally, that other people will still get to enjoy the content they like, opposed to absolutely no one getting to? It certainly can't be that you, personally, can't access their content anymore, because, quite frankly, I doubt you actually like it very much.

As for your five billion questions for why this makes you racist: You singling out Steven makes you racist. They founded this company together and they doubtlessly made this decision together and the narrative that is currently spun of "Shane (the white dude) would never, his evil non-white co-workers are forcing him to!" is .... extremely parasocial, and wildly random and coming out of nowhere.

Except for all the parts it's not, because of COURSE. Of course the evil guy and the guy who creates content "no one wants to fund" and who now everyone calls "boring" and who now has viral hate tweets saying he's "dragged Ryan and Shane down", is the asian guy who's pushed for diversity on the channel from the very start.

Like, he's well aware that his shows are the least popular. There's a reason for that, sweetie, and I promise you, it has to do with the fact that they've focused on diversity and quality rather than shittalking in front of a camera. And I'm not even a Steven girlie, I'm a Ghost Files ride or die, baby!

But this narrative that he's "homophobic and racist" because he said in a podcast once that he chooses to stay friends with people who sometimes sprout ignorant views, that's like- Get a fucking grip. I know y'all haven't reached adult life yet, it is painfully apparent, but there comes a time in life where you'll have to realize that sometimes the people around you aren't as socially aware or educated as you, but in their nature good eggs, and you can, of course, choose to drop their asses, if you don't happen to be otherwise connected to them in an adult environment, where jobs and friend groups often overlap or they're part of your family or family's circle, but the far, far better choice is to be their friend and educate them. Because that's the best way the ignorant views become less ignorant. That's literally what he's been saying in that podcast ep, by the way. I don't need to "google" that and I don't need your twitter links, I was there when that episode dropped. I listened to it as I did the dishes. I was applauding Steven for putting in the time and effort and energy to DO that with people, because I oftentimes find myself too scared to have the conversations he is having.

Watcher has donated to queer charities. They sell queer merch. They have queer employees. Their fanbase is mainly queer. He's not homophobic, y'all are insane. If any of that would go against his values, he'd a) not be in a company with Ryan and Shane, because they wouldn't be having it and b) wouldn't stand up for, employ and cater to queer people. He'd be out with the homophobes, telling us how Jesus died for our sins or whatever.

He's also not racist which- duh. Before I even knew Steven Lim, I already knew this is something he is incredibly(!) sensitive about, he literally hates racism (And I don't know if you noticed. But he's very often the target of it, you absolute bufoon) and specifically went into Watcher to be able to help marginalized voices have a platform. That was his goal for Watcher that he couldn't properly fulfil in Buzzfeed. I know that. Because I was there from the start and actually listened to them talk. And it was stated and proven many, many times.

Y'all so eager to jump on a hate train and take shit out of context, it's pathetic. And "homophobic" good God, he had a book on his bookshelf. Wow. I have Harry Potter in three different editions on my bookshelf, I've learned reading with them. They have tear stains on the pages where Dumbledore died. You're gonna say I'm a transphobe if you see them in a photo? Gonna go ahead and call me, a trans guy, a transphobe now? Knock yourself out. Because I'll care about that about as much as I care about how many angry little kids are unsubscribing from Watcher rn: Not even a little bit.

You're whining like little bitches in random fan's inboxes, are throwing insults, false accusations and racism around to stirr the pot, you're coming for Steven as if Ryan and Shane aren't literally HORRIFIED by y'all doing this in their name to someone who's their close friend. As if Watcher would even exist without him, when he saved it from going bankrupt in their first year, when Ryan and Shane couldn't be arsed to step up and figure out how to run a company.

You weren't paying them anyway. I'm subscribed to their Patreon at the highest tier, because I know good art doesn't come free and I knew they were gonna struggle on Youtube views alone and I enjoy their content and want to help them keep making it. I don't expect anyone to be able to do that - And they don't either. They also don't expect everyone to pay or be able to pay for their streaming services. They're currently working on responding to the feedback and make things more accessible. They certainly didn't handle this perfectly and they certainly didn't want to make this choice if they had another one. Neither of the three.

You won't pay for it. That's fine. That's literally all there is to it. There's no need to sling this shit around, but you're doing it anyway. Not because you care, but because you're having fun with it. Well, go ahead. The more hate you send, the more I know I'm standing up for the right people.

#watcher #watcher entertainment #discourse #sorry to my poor doctor who followers lmao #things are.... a lot

[oftenwantedafton]

Kismet - Dave Miller/William Afton x Female Reader

Chapter 2

Rating - Explicit

Word Count - 6k

CW - none for this chapter

Also available on AO3

Dave Miller sinks lower into the bathtub.

Contemplating. Reminiscing. Thinking about the events that have led him to collide with you not once, but twice now. Seeming coincidences. But he doesn’t really believe things are that incidental. Everything has purpose. The challenge was figuring out what that purpose was. Taking advantage of it.

The first encounter had been after he’d taken care of the security guard.

A useless employee from the start. Bothersome. Woefully inept. He’d been pitifully easy to dispatch. But messy. So much blood. An industrial level washer was needed to take care of things. He hadn’t thought anyone would be at the laundromat at that hour.

But there you were. Catching him off guard. Only for a moment. Your eyes on him. Not paying any attention to what he’d been carrying. And why would you? What reason would you have to suspect the laundry he was carting around so casually was in fact saturated with another man’s lifeforce? Simply watching him. Trying to be surreptitious and subtle about it and failing miserably. Amusing. You’d bolted like a frightened rabbit when he’d finally spoken, bidding you goodnight.

The Kawasaki Ninja is a newer purchase. A reward for himself. Not something he would have imagined himself operating even a year ago. But times are changing. He’s changing. Entering the next phase. Camouflage. Difficult to detect. Blending chameleon-like. It’s how he’s managed to avoid getting caught for any of his crimes. Elusive and stealthy.

Except when he’d literally almost run smack into you. Distracted. A lapse in judgment and a last minute decision. The weakness for animals forcing him to maneuver away. The scratches on his hands are already mending. He looks at them beneath the surface of the water. Thinks about you on the back of his bike. He’s never allowed anyone onto it before. An impulsive decision he can’t explain. He’d enjoyed it. Feeling your arms wrapped around him. Clinging. It’s not like him to let anyone get close. Yet there he had been, encouraging it.

He slides down further until he’s submerged. Holds his breath. Waits until the burning pressure borne of desperation for air becomes unbearable and then breaks through the surface. Slicking back dark tendrils of hair as the water tracks down his cheeks. He’ll visit you again soon. And then he’ll just let fate take its course.

It hasn’t failed him yet.

***

You step into the darkroom and switch on the safe light, bathing the small, confined space in a red glow.

You’d spent most of the morning taking pictures around your college campus. There aren’t nearly as many people around in the summer, but you kind of like that solitude. Summer classes aren’t bad either. Accelerated, yes, but less work in the long run. A good way to get some required electives out of the way. General Anatomy and Introduction to Psychology are the two you’re currently tackling. At least the first is helpful for drawing. The other, well. It’s easy enough. You’d already taken it in high school. This version was even easier. No exams. Just a paper due at the end of the semester. You have a bad habit of procrastinating, but you’re good at achieving something impressive in the eleventh hour. Working better when you’re under pressure.

This film you’re about to develop, though; this is nothing like a chore. Your true passion. You like digital photography well enough, but there was something about old school picture developing. The hands on feeling of creation. Waiting for the result to develop. More rewarding for the additional effort, you think.

You place the first negative on the enlarger tray. Focus until the depth of field is altered. Photographic paper now laid on the baseboard. Set the timer. Exposure. Covering more and more of the picture as the seconds tick by in increments of ten. You’re creating a test strip to determine what length of exposure works best. Now bathing the paper in the trays of chemicals. Developer, stop bath, fixer. You make sure the box of photographic paper is sealed before switching on the regular light. Clear demarcations on the test image ranging from bright light and a fainter print to the final column that’s deeply shadowed and darkly printed. Eighty seconds seems to be the best of the lot, somewhere in the middle range. You repeat the process again, adjusting the timer countdown and letting the entire sheet of photographic paper be exposed. Studying the result. Perfect. Rinsed and hung up to dry. That’s your first image done. Safely set aside as you begin again. The afternoon wanes. You glance at the clock. Time for a quick bite to eat and then you’re due back at the shelter.

Your university is mentioned on the five ‘o clock news you switch on for background noise when you return home. You’d heard some girls talking about it during class earlier. Someone attacking women. You’ve got mace and a concealed self defense weapon on your keyring. You’re not quite as worried since all of your classes are during the day, but still. You suppose that doesn’t give you immunity. Anything could happen.

Case in point, your run in with that strange man Dave Miller. Two run ins, no less.

You’d trusted him enough to go for a ride on his bike. After he’d nearly run you down on it. Maybe not your sanest idea. You’d intially felt like he was dangerous. Just something in the way he’d carried himself. After actually holding a conversation with the stranger, you’d found that feeling dissolving. Maybe not really dangerous. Just aloof. A little odd. Intriguing, though. Difficult to explain. You hadn’t really spoken all that much. He’d invited you to ride with him again. You’d accepted. Now you were just in limbo. Waiting for another visit. Or a chance encounter. Another late night rendezvous at the laundromat, maybe. You really should be more careful. Maybe going out alone in the wee hours wasn’t the best idea, even if it was so close to home. Who’s to say the campus stalker wouldn’t broaden his target range? Or some other psycho. Either way. You should be more careful.

No new animals for the intake today. The kittens are growing rapidly. You make sure the back door is always firmly shut now, lesson learned. Sweating inside the building. Making sure the animals have plenty of fresh water. You’re getting used to the routine. It’s much earlier when you leave. You might have time to get some homework done before attempting sleep.

You find yourself driving in the opposite direction of your apartment. Heading to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria.

It’s a dumb idea, admittedly. There’s no guarantee that Dave will be there. And even if he is. He’ll be working. Hardly free to entertain you. But you’re kind of curious about returning even without the security guard’s presence. It’s been so many years since your last visit to the establishment. It would be an interesting site to take pictures of.

Pulling into the parking lot, you realize just how run down the place has become.

No effort made to clear the lot of the weeds and other vegetation that have reclaimed their territory. The exterior of the building in disrepair. Smashed lights. Pieces of the wall tiling missing. Graffiti spray painted all over every surface. A far cry from the cheerful, colorful pizzeria you remember from your childhood.

You don’t see the motorcycle anywhere but you suppose the employee might have parked elsewhere. There’s a buzzer by the front door. You press it, waiting. It’s difficult to see inside the building. Minimal lighting. Now something moving in the shadowed interior. Someone. Walking forward. Tall, slim. It’s Miller.

You hear the sound of a lock turning before he pushes the heavy glass door open. “What a pleasant surprise.”

“Sorry, I know I wasn’t invited. I just was heading home and I thought…” Well, what could you say, really? That you’d decided to head in the complete opposite direction on a whim, on the off chance that he’d be there? You had no idea how many different employees guarded the building. Maybe he was the only one? Did anyone safeguard during the day? You somehow doubted it.

“I was actually planning on visiting you soon. So this worked out well. Welcome back to Freddy’s.” The older man smirks and you feel something flutter inside you. He was attractive, you had to admit. Maybe slightly harsh features, but they were growing on you the more you looked at them.

He doesn’t move from his position holding the door open and you’re forced to squeeze by, brushing against him. Deliberate? There’s a strange smell inside the restaurant that assaults you as soon as you enter the dining room. Chemicals. Strong. You bring your hand to your face to cover your nose and mouth.

“Floors were washed recently,” he offers, letting the door swing shut before he pulls a heavy keyring off his belt and fits one into the lock. “It’s not as potent by the offices.”

You nod, looking around. Another cascade of deja vu spilling over you. There’s the prize counter, next to the arcade. The infamous ball pit. A small curtained stage and its much larger counterpart. “Are they still up there?”

“Yes. You can have a look, if you want.”

Morbid curiosity gets the better of you. You ascend the short set of stairs to the raised platform. A place you weren’t allowed to go as a child, for employees only.

The drapes are heavy. It takes a lot of effort to shift them. A hand on your shoulder makes you jump.

“Sorry. Want a flashlight? It’s dark back there.”

You accept the offering, switching it on. Nearly jump again when the beam falls on a large blue rabbit right in front of you. Bonnie. Still clutching his red electric guitar. A little dirtier than you remember, but surprisingly intact otherwise. You pan the light around. Freddy front and center with microphone in hand. Chica with her bib and oversized cupcake companion sitting on a plate. You remember the pirate fox occupying the smaller stage nearby.

“Did you have a favorite?”

You duck around the curtain again, handing the flashlight back to Dave. “Not in particular. I just remember having fun. Until, you know.”

“Such a shame.” He thumbs the switch off and slots it back in his belt.

“This place would be amazing to photograph.”

“You’re a photographer?” He sounds surprised.

You nod. “It’s what I’m studying at the university.”

“What do you take pictures of?”

“Anything, really. Whatever inspires me. I love prints still. Physical media. Black and white especially. There’s something special about images captured that way. People dismiss it so readily now. But there are so many levels to it. It’s not just black and white. There are colors in between that. Degrees of darkness and light that you’d never notice otherwise. I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

“A bit. But I don’t mind. You’re passionate about this.” He tips his head to one side thoughtfully. “Do you have your camera with you now?”

“In the car, yeah.”

“You want to take some pictures?”

“Am I allowed to? I’m not even sure I should be in here. I kind of feel like I’m trespassing a bit.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t have invited you in otherwise. I don’t think the owner would appreciate just anyone in here snooping around, but…you’re not one of those people looking to exploit this establishment’s remains. There’s a genuine kind of reverence. Nostalgia. I know for a fact he appreciates that kind of sentimentality.”

“Do you know the owner well?”

A faint smirk. “You could say that.”

“What’s he doing now that this place is shut down?”

A heavy sigh. “As you’re probably aware, the media did not paint him in the kindest light after the allegations. Even though he was cleared, the damage was already done. Name tarnished. Reputation demolished. Difficult to come back from in a small town like this. So he’s just trying to lead a quiet life now. Trying out a new existence. Not quite willing to let the past go…” His voice trails off.

“I’m going to go get my camera, then.”

Dave’s gaze sharpens, whatever odd reminiscing he’d found himself lost in dissipating. “I’ll unlock the door for you.”

You return with a fresh roll of film loaded into the camera, another tucked into the pocket of your jeans. You’d been glad to get a little fresh air. That chemical smell really hits you as soon as you enter the building. Your initial enthusiasm to begin taking pictures wavers a bit when you realize a fundamental problem.

The security guard sees you hesitating as he finishes locking the door again. “What’s wrong?”

“The lighting.”

“Is that all? Easily fixed. Give me a moment.”

The tall man disappears back through the employee restricted area. Nothing. Then, everything happens all at once. The center stage curtains slide back. Rows of luminaires suddenly glow. A blossoming rainbow of bright primary colors. Neon signs on the checkerboard patterned walls humming. The arcade games switched back on. Digital music. Bright red scoreboard displays on skeeball lanes. A wave of nostalgia washes over you. This was more like what you remembered from your childhood. Staring open mouthed. Your gaze finally landing on Dave, leaning against the wall near the stage with his arms folded across his chest. Looking almost smug. Proud. Something.

“It all still works?”

“For the most part, yes.”

“It’s amazing.” You’re genuinely impressed. It takes you no time at all to fill the roll. Part of another. You’re excited. Wondering how they’ll look.

You settle into a booth near the stage across from Miller. Pop music from the eighties playing. The animatronics moving jerkily in time to the sound. You’re still taking it all in. Feeling your male companion’s eyes on you. Maybe it’s not impressive when you’re surrounded by it every day. You just think you’d be awfully tempted to play in the arcade if you worked here.

You glance down at the camera. Several shots left. You lift it to your face, focusing on Dave’s. He immediately blocks his features with his hand. “No. Not me.”

“Why not you? You have an interesting face.”

“I don’t like having my picture taken.”

“But you’re so photogenic,” you protest, lowering the camera. “They’re just for me, anyway. It’s not like I’m showing anyone else.”

He lowers his hand, scowling. “Fine.”

“Really?”

“Hurry, before I change my mind.”

“Okay, can you just turn your face. There. Like that. Lean back a little.” You can feel his impatience wafting across the table. You’ll have to rush it a bit. “And…done.”

“I need to shut things down. Get back to the security office.”

“Awww. Okay, I get it.” Of course he was here to work. Guarding the property. Still, you wouldn’t have minded a little more time basking in the glory of retro Freddy’s.

“Are you coming with me?”

“To the security office?” He nods. “Am I allowed to go back there?”

“I won’t tell if you don’t.” That little secret smile again. You follow him back into the restricted area.

“Let me finish giving you the grand tour.”

The security guard leads you to a panel with the controls for all of the lighting and equipment, switching them all off. Past this there are several offices. Storage rooms. One massive section labeled Parts and Service that’s cluttered with equipment. Broken animatronics. Shapes that are hard to make out in the dim lighting and the older man makes no offer to brighten your view any further.

The tour ends in the security office itself.

Dated looking technology. Several monitors stacked on a battered desk. Yellowing plastic controls. Something about the flame retardant they’d used in old computers and other electronic devices, you remember reading somewhere. A poster of the lead animatronics and some children’s drawings tacked to the wall, including a trio of animals created out of construction paper and paper plates. A steel filing cabinet. A large clock that reminds you of the kind in your elementary school. A hardbacked chair tucked into the corner that he drags closer to the swivel one in front of the desk for you to sit on. A desk fan hums as it attempts to circulate the stale warm air around. He’d been right, you couldn’t really smell the cleaning solution back here. But the place was cramped, dreary. You can’t imagine spending eight hours stuck in this room. He sits in the office chair, that lean figure draping over the structure, spinning the chair slightly. Clearly waiting for you to sit.

You find yourself doing so stiffly. Close to the edge, as if you aren’t intending on staying long. Ready to bolt. You have this strong feeling that you don’t belong here. You’re definitely intruding. Trespassing, no matter what Dave says.

“So. Now you’ve seen what most visitors never get to. A behind the scenes peek.”

“It’s cool.” The nylon strap of your camera pulls at your neck. You’d never been overly fond of keeping it there.

“You know, it’s interesting. When we first met, I thought the animals were your vocation.”

“Oh, you mean the shelter? No, that’s just a part time gig I enjoy doing.”

“How is the rabbit?” The guard lifts a paper cup bearing the logo of a local fast food joint off the desk and takes a sip from the straw. Grimacing a bit. Probably watered down by now.

“Still there. Doing fine. We haven’t gotten anyone new. No one’s found a home, either.”

“How far along in your studies are you?”

“I’ve finished my first year, taking summer classes before heading into sophomore.”

Dave sets the cup back down. Looking at you. That perpetual look of amusement tugging his lips into a not quite smile. You don’t know what to make of it.

“You don’t look comfortable. You can sit back, you know. Nothing’s going to reach out and grab you.”

“I know.” You push back further into the chair. The movement makes the metal legs scrape the floor and you wince at the harsh sound. “How long have you worked here?”

“Not long. This place has a bit of a high turnover. I had to fill in rather last minute.” A more defined smirk now. Almost sinister looking. Deep shadows under his ash gray eyes. He really is an insomniac like yourself.

“What did you do before this?”

“Oh, this and that,” Miller replies vaguely, stretching. First his long legs straight out in front of him. Then each arm, twisting to rotate both shoulders. Finally his neck, which cracks loudly.

“Do you get bored? I mean, I can’t imagine there’s that much excitement just staring at the monitors. Doing rounds in the dark. Unless you switch things on regularly…”

“No. That was a special occassion. Normally things are…yes, I guess they are quiet.” He’s hiding something. Changing what he’d been about to say. You’re certain of it.

“Must be lonely.”

Dave leans forward slightly, his hands clasping together. “That problem’s been solved, though, hasn’t it?”

A little somersault in your stomach. Not once since you’ve entered the restaurant has it occurred to you that you’re locked inside a building with a virtual stranger. In an establishment that had been shuttered because children had gone missing. Yet here you were, chatting it up in a restricted area. The man seated very close to you. “I can’t stay all night,” you say quickly. “Just so you know. I only stopped by to say hi.”

“Sure, sure.” He waves a hand in the air breezily, leaning back again. He really had such elegant hands. Speaking of which.

“How are your hands, by the way?”

“Oh, they’re fine. Healing quickly.” Holding up a palm for you to see the red lines that are already fading. “What’s your schedule like? We should go for another ride soon. Maybe get something to eat.”

“I don’t work at the shelter on the weekends. I do have a class on Saturday mornings, so…”

“Perfect. Anywhere in particular you want to be picked up? I know these days people tend to be…restrictive about revealing where they reside.”

“You have to be careful. There’s a man stalking women at my school.” Not that you were really being careful right now. But honestly, if he was going to try anything unsavory, wouldn’t he have done it already?

Dave frowns. “Really? What about campus security?”

“It’s not the greatest. I can tell you for a fact that…well, maybe it’s just them turning a blind eye,” you amend hurriedly. You’d been about to say you’d heard more than one person brag about getting lucky in the parking lots.

Miller’s not letting you off the hook that easily. “Tell me what for a fact?”

You feel your cheeks flush. “Nothing. Just…kids messing around and no one stops it.”

“Ah.” He folds his arm across his chest. “Well, it’s difficult when you’re young. Troublesome curfews. Nosy adults. Limited places to…engage in activities.”

“Yeah.” You squirm in your chair, wishing he’d change the subject.

“You live on campus or off?”

“Off. Apartment.”

“Hmm. So you don’t really have those concerns to worry about anymore, do you?”

Was he flirting? Suggesting something? It was so difficult to tell. “I guess not,” you mumble.

“Well, figure out what day and where to meet you and let me know. Easy enough since you know where to find me.”

It suddenly clicks that he hasn’t looked at the monitors even once since you’ve entered the room. You glance at them now and he seems to see the direction of your gaze. “Don’t worry. I’m well aware of what’s going on.”

“How? Do you have eyes in the back of your head?”

“Something like that.” Another one of those grins you don’t know how to interpret.

You stand finally, willing some feeling back into legs that were going numb from your awkward positioning. Dave escorts you back to the main entrance. “I’ll stop by again to let you know when I can go out.”

“I look forward to it. And bring the photographs with you. I’m curious to see how they turn out.” You nod, once again forced to press close to the guard when you exit the building. Maybe it was unintentional, but you’re fairly certain he knows exactly what he’s doing.

The question is, do you like it? Do you like him enough to come back again? To go out with him, spend more time together?

You feel his eyes on you the entire walk back to your car.

***

You should be studying anatomy. There’s an exam on the skeletal and muscular system on Wednesday.

Instead you’re back in the darkroom. Developing those film rolls from Freddy’s. The results are not what you’d expected.

The pictures of the restaurant came out fine—great, even. It’s just the ones of the animatronics that are wonky. A strange blurry effect on each that you can’t account for. It’s on every single image of the mascots, directly over their faces, and appears no where else. You just can’t make sense of it, disappointed that the iconic figures weren’t properly captured.

You’re holding a picture of Dave now, the print nearly completely dry. Eyes piercing right through the paper at you. Everything contrasting sharply. Pale skin. Almost as white as a ghost in the photograph. Dark messy hair. Those sooty smudged undereyes. The way his body is positioned, it looks as if he’s recoiling from the stage illumination nearby. Hunching into the shadowed recesses of the booth. The elegant line of his hands resting on the table. Tracking back up over the skinny black tie and silver badge to the epaulets bridging long neck and wide shoulders. Pouting lips. Those eyes demanding attention again.

It’s hot in the room suddenly. Pricks of perspiration on the back of your neck. You gather your things and step outside, squinting against the suddenly bright illumination of the hallway and the sun outdoors.

Back home you’ve got your textbook open. Over two hundred bones to learn. Fingers creeping repeatedly towards the folder beside your backpack. You tell yourself to focus. You keep seeing the blurred mascots. Dave’s eyes.

You’re going back tonight.

***

Dave Miller senses there’s a different energy in the air tonight.

That feeling one gets before the start of a thunderstorm. A charged sort of anticipation. Hairs lifting. A certain scent. One of Hurricane’s rare rain storms approaching. Bringing you with it.

He doesn’t waste his time in the security office. He’s outside by the entrance. Leaning against crumbling mortar. Listening to the hum of insects. The first muttered rumble from the heavens.

Your car engine. Twin lights in the darkness. Your approach slowing when you realize he’s standing there.

“Hi. Is everything okay?” Surprised to see him outdoors, he thinks.

“Yes. Just enjoying the weather.”

“Oh. Yeah, I love thunderstorms.” You halt when you’re still a good distance away.

“What’s that you’ve got there?” As if he doesn’t know. A slim folder that must contain the photos you’d taken the other day. He admits he’s curious to see them. It had been so long since anyone had captured images of the restaurant. Not since the disappearances. Interested to see what you think of them. What the establishment looks like through the lens of your camera. Through the focus of your eye.

“I’ve got the pictures. Um, some of them came out kind of weird.”

“Weird how?” He pushes off from the edge of the building. More thunder now, and a brief flash of lightning. The storm was drawing closer. “You should come inside before you get drenched and ruin those. It’s going to hit any second now.”

You finish your journey to his side. He holds the door open. The first drops of rain fall, sinking into his shirt, his hair. A kiss on one cheek. You hurry inside.

He relocks the door and leads you back to the security office. The sound of the rain is muted here.

You lay the folder on one of the few empty spaces on the cluttered desk.

“Have a seat.” He pushes the swivel office chair and you sink into it. The hardbacked one still hasn’t been returned to its former location. He neglects it, remaining standing. Looking over your seated form.

“The majority of them came out great. But the animatronics…” You withdraw a photograph and hand it to the security guard.

Miller studies the picture for a long time. He knows instantly what the strange hazy effect is. Fascinating that it had been captured on film.

He can hardly reveal what it truly is to you, though. So he shrugs and hands it back. “Something with the film itself, maybe. A defect. The lighting, perhaps. Maybe the motion—”

“—There’s nothing wrong with the film,” you say firmly. “Every other picture is fine. And it’s not the lighting or the movement, either.”

“So what do you think it is, then?”

You sigh and set them back inside the folder face down. “I don’t know.”

“May I see the rest?”

“Yeah, sure.” You hand the stack to him.

He’s certainly not an expert on photography, but he can see you’ve got a good eye for it. It’s not simply a collection of random snapshots. There’s a variety in terms of focus. Attention to detail. Instead of an entire arcade machine, a close up of the joystick controller, the lit screen adding a hazy pop of color to the background. A close study of the artwork on a pinball machine between the levers. The way the lighting shines through a long vacant glass sitting forgotten on one of the tables. A kind of eerie beauty to it. Haunting. And it was haunted. You’d captured it. You just didn’t know it.

The images of himself are at the end of the pile. These he doesn’t linger on. He’s thinking of the press. Nosy journalists invading his privacy. He’d looked different then. Heavier. Known for being cheerful, friendly, approachable. Until he’d lost his youngest son. Until the disappearances. Losing the joy from life. Food tasting like ash. No longer comforting. The smile evolving into what it is today. A smirk over a private joke only he can enjoy.

Dave hands the photographs back to you. “What will you do with them?”

“I don’t know. Put them in a binder, I guess.”

“You’re talented. Gifted, I dare say.”

“I guess.” You seem discouraged. Disappointed that the pictures weren’t what you’d hoped they’d be.

“Nothing is ever as clear as a memory. Nor as deceiving,” he murmurs.

“What?”

“Nothing.” He glances at his wristwatch. “You’re here very late. It’s nearly four.”

“I couldn’t sleep.”

“You struggle with that a lot.”

“So do you.”

“When do you want me to take you out? If you don’t mind hanging around for a couple more hours, my shift will be over. We can go out to breakfast if you’d like.”

“Okay.” You’re nervous. He can feel the energy of it, not unlike that tension that had preceded the storm outside. “What are we going to do for two hours?” This said softly, as if you’re reluctant to voice the query.

“That’s entirely up to you.”

You start to rise from your seat. “You can sit here if you’d rather…”

“No. Stay.” The guard slouches into the empty chair next to yours and hooks one foot underneath the wheeled bar at the bottom, dragging you closer in one smooth motion. A little gasp from you at the abrupt shift in your position. “You spent a long time looking at that picture of me.”

“What?” You’re blushing. “No, I didn’t.”

“You did. You know how I know? Because your fingerprints are all over it. Only that one. Not even your…interesting captures of Freddy and the gang have that much attention on them.”

“I just…I just think your face is interesting,” you murmur defensively.

“Interesting how?”

“I don’t know.” Your eyes evade his.

“Suddenly shy when you’ve been bold enough to come here not once, but twice. Why do you think that is?” You shrug, shaking your head. “This is going to be a very long two hours if the conversation continues to be one sided.”

“Maybe I should go.”

His lips press into a thin line. Not the reaction he’d been expecting. “If that’s what you want.” Your eyes finally meet his. “What, did you think I was holding you prisoner? Come. Go. Entirely your decision.”

“I need you to unlock the door.”

“Of course.” He shoves the chair back roughly, watching you hesitate over the folder sitting on the desk. “Keep them. You wanted them.”

“The rain…”

“Fine. I’ll drop them off some other time when you’re working. Or you can come collect them.”

You exit the office empty handed and he walks behind you. You have no trouble finding your way back to the entrance now.

Through the glass doors he can see the rain is torrential. Sheets of moisture that cascade down, the sky weeping furiously. You’re staring at the deluge, wide eyed.

“You’re sure you want to go out in that?”

“Yes.” Your voice wavers but you’re already reaching for the handle.

“The driving could be dangerous,” he cautions.

“I’ll manage.” You shove the door open. The scent of petrichor. Warm, wet air. You inhale deeply. Bracing yourself. Darting into the downpour.

You nearly make it to your car. Turn to look back in his direction and stumble, going down. An arc of lightning illuminates your soaked form.

Dave curses, exiting the building. Instantly drenched, clothing plastered to skin. Lifting you to your feet. A deep, jagged tear in the asphalt nearby causes you to lose your footing again, but he holds you upright.

“My ankle, I think I…”

It’s difficult to hear you, forced to compete with the sound of the storm. Rainwater runs into his eyes. He impatiently shoves at the damp tendrils of hair plastered against his face, scooping you up into his arms before you can even react, carrying you back to the restaurant.

You wince when he sets you down to open the door.

“Can you walk at all? Bear weight?”

You bite your lip, nodding. Limping inside, leaning heavily on the older man’s shoulder. The door hisses shut. The sound of water pattering on the linoleum. He crouches down, moving the hem of your damp jeans and peeling down the wet ankle sock. Gently probing. “Sprain, most likely. Come sit down.” He drags one of the chairs from the nearby tables for you to sit on.

“How can you tell?”

“Because my eldest son had a knack for getting sports injuries.”

“You have a child?”

“Three.”

“Are you married?”

“Was.” He yanks another chair over and sits next to you. “What?”

“I didn’t know you had kids.”

“They don’t live with me. They’re…grown now. Gone. Why do you look so surprised?”

“I just…I didn’t know.”

“You didn’t ask.”

“I don’t really know anything about you.”

“You could have started learning. You know, over breakfast today, for example. Except that idea seemed unacceptable to you, so, here we are.” He rakes a hand through his damp tresses again. “Why were you in such a hurry to leave?”

“I got scared.”

He scoffs. “Of what? Of me? What did I do?”

He watches you tentatively stretch your injured foot out, grimacing. “Nothing. I just…I don’t know. I got nervous all of a sudden. I don’t really know you,” you repeat again.

“So get to know me, then.”

“Alright. I’m sorry you got wet.”

“Wet is putting it mildly,” he mutters.

“Okay. Drenched.”

“Mmm-hmm. Let me go grab the first aid kit. I can wrap your ankle, stabilize it. Get some ice from the freezer. I always keep some made. And you should keep that leg elevated,” he adds, standing and moving his chair so you can rest your foot on it.

Miller returns shortly with the supplies. Kneeling down. Unlacing your canvas sneaker. Pulling off the shoe and sock as gently as he can. Winding the elastic compression around the swollen joint, then setting a plastic bag full of ice chips on top of it.

“Thank you. You’re good at that. Gentle.”

“Like I said, a lot of practice. It’s the exact treatment you’d get if you went to urgent care.” He straightens.

“Are you close with your kids still?”

A long pause. “No. Not by choice, just…it’s complicated.” He notices you staring again. This time at his arms. The single layer of the shirt can’t conceal the scars beneath, the red patterns peeking through the damp material. “There’s a lot to unpack. With me. It’s going to be an investment. A commitment. This isn’t some teenage romance. You’re with an adult. An entirely different playing field. So you should be certain that’s what you want.”

He sees you swallow. Hears it, even. “Okay.” Your voice cracks a little. “Okay,” you repeat more firmly.

“Not going to run again?” Shifting some of your damp strands of hair now. Grazing your cheek. Your gaze still holding steady.

“No.”

“You know if you hadn’t looked back, you probably wouldn’t have tripped and fallen. But you couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

“I felt bad.”

“Why?”

“For leaving you behind.”

“You’re not going to make that mistake again, though, are you?” His thumb drags against your lower lip. “Because you want to stay. You want this.” You nod slightly, your face moving against his fingers.

Dave smiles.

#william afton x reader #william afton x you #dave miller x you #dave miller x reader

[joesburrows]

Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover

SUMMARY: Joe has some conflicting thoughts about who he is as a person.

PAIRING: Joe Burrow x Original Character

WARNINGS: cheating (sort of)

WORD COUNT: 1.4k

------

Joe and Nova had a rather perfect life. There wasn’t anything that could tear them apart; they’d been dating since their LSU days where they had met when Joe had transferred there. And now that Joe was in the NFL, there wasn’t anything those two couldn’t handle.

But Nova had noticed that Joe had become a little distant lately. She couldn’t pinpoint why, and maybe she was just overthinking things like she would usually do, but instead of bringing it up to him so they could talk about it, she let it go. Little did she know that would end up being the biggest mistake of her life.

Joe, on the other hand, knew he was being distant. A couple weeks back when he was picking up takeout for him and Nova after a grueling day of practice, he’d met one of the employees at the restaurant he really enjoyed talking to while he waited on the food to finish cooking. Only problem was that he didn’t have their phone number, hadn’t seen them since that day, and didn’t know if he would again.

But that wasn’t even the biggest problem he was currently faced with. The problem was that the person he met was a man. And Joe was incredibly confused on why he felt some kind of way towards him. He hadn’t ever thought of men in that way, hadn’t ever really considered himself as anything other than straight. It was all he knew, especially growing up in the conservative household that he did. And practically being thrust into the football world at such a young age, hadn’t really helped his questioning either. Football was a gritty, masculine sport. It was very rare that you heard of anyone being gay or any sexuality other than straight.

The only thing Joe was completely sure of, was that he wasn’t gay. He was simply just trying to figure out if he was something more than just what he had always known since he was young. Would it be such a bad thing if he was? Yes, actually. Well, that’s what he told himself, at least. Now that he was in the NFL, all eyes were on him. And more so now since he was playing the best football he’d ever had in his entire career this year. Literally every single move he made, was practically under a microscope. And with the Bengals being the current reigning AFC Champions and making a Super Bowl run last season, it was only making it harder on him to cope with how he was feeling at the moment.

One night while Joe was sitting up in bed watching film on his iPad, as per usual, Nova was busy showering. It was their usual routine. Joe had work or practice during the day and when he came home, they’d have dinner, talk for a little while, maybe watch some television, then they’d head to bed where he would sometimes stay up a little later just to watch more film. But he couldn’t seem to find himself being able to concentrate on what he was watching. He pressed pause on the film for a moment and set his iPad down on the bed beside him, then reaching over to pick up his phone. He could still hear the shower running, so he knew he had a little bit of time to make an incredibly stupid decision that would potentially cost him his entire relationship.

Joe had downloaded the Grindr app after he had met the guy he couldn’t stop thinking about. Though, he hadn’t put it to use until now because he didn’t think he had a need for it. But with his curious mind, he opened up the app and created a profile for himself. He wasn’t going to do anything, he decided. He was just going to look. There wasn’t anything wrong with simply looking… Right?

Once his information was input into his profile, available men in the area had started to pop up on the home screen. It was weird. He’d never done this sort of thing before, but it felt… Good in some way. Like he didn’t have to hide who he felt like he was. Instead of putting on a front for everyone he knew and the entire world.

While Joe was swiping through everyone, he had stopped dead in his tracks when the profile of the man he met back at the restaurant popped up. His name was Jameson, but mostly went by James. There was no fucking way. His mind had to have been messing with him, that must’ve been it. But he was most definitely there, and Joe didn’t hesitate to swipe right. The two were instantly connected and he quickly went to send him a message.

Hey, it’s Joe. I don’t know if you remember me, but I was the guy you were talking to at work a couple weeks ago. I didn’t know you were on here.

When Joe was quickly hit with a message back seconds later, he sat up a little straighter and glanced over at the bathroom door to make sure it was still shut and that the shower water was still running. His heart was pounding in his chest, but in the most exciting way it had in a long time.

Hey, Joe! I do remember you, it was great talking to you that day. Safe to say I could say the same thing because the last thing I would’ve expected to see is you on here. You know, being the star quarterback of the Bengals and all. Could’ve sworn it was a myth that football players could like men.

Very funny. It’s not a myth. Not that I know of, at least. But it’s kind of frowned upon, I guess. There aren’t many out and proud football players in the league.

Joe felt a flush of warmth cover his entire body as two of them exchanged more messages. He couldn’t help but to feel so comfortable and at ease talking to this guy. However, he knew the fantasy wasn’t bound to last long. He’d suddenly heard the door to the bathroom unlock and he nearly dropped his phone on the floor in trying to act unsuspecting while setting it back down on the nightstand table. He went to grab his iPad again and pressed play on the film again, pretending as if he hadn’t just been doing something he shouldn’t have been doing.

A then freshly showered Nova appeared in the room, and she walked over to him with a smile, leaning down to press a kiss to his lips. “Hi, honey. How was your shower?” Joe asked, returning the kiss with a smile of his own.

“It was good, nothing special. How’s film watching going?” Nova responded as she maneuvered around the bed to make herself comfortable on her side of it.

“The same as usual,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

The small talk between the two of them was driving them both insane. It happened every night. They would barely talk and if they did, it was the same damn conversation every single time. The nagging feeling that Nova had wouldn’t go away, but she still didn’t want to say anything. She really was just trying to avoid an argument or perhaps a large-scale fight. The two of them had their fair share of fights being together as long as they were, and they were never pretty. Which was her entire reasoning behind not wanting to bring anything up.

Joe could hear Nova sigh next to him as she laid down and stared up at the ceiling, clearly deep in thought. He stopped watching film and decided to lock his iPad before setting it down next to his phone on the nightstand table, turning off the light for the night. He moved to lay beside her on his side, pulling her into him so he could spoon her from behind. “Something wrong, baby?”

Nova chewed on her bottom lip, still deep in thought as she contemplated on finally bringing up the distance issue when Joe asked her if anything was wrong. But she decided against it. At least for now because it was late at night and they were both tired, and had to be up early for work in the morning. She sighed again and leaned back into his embrace before shutting her eyes for the night. “Not at all, babe. I love you.”

She could faintly hear him whisper he loved her back and telling her goodnight before they both eventually fell asleep. Without either of them knowing that they both had so much on their mind that they wanted to talk about.

#joe burrow #joe burrow fanfic #joe burrow fanfiction #joe burrow x oc #joe burrow x reader #joe burrow imagine #cincinnati bengals #nfl fanfic #nfl fanfiction #joe burrow fic #joe burrow fan fic #nfl fan fic #nfl imagine #nfl smut

[ladylilithprime]

Family Traditions, Part Two

Series: Fluffy Faerie Tales

Fandom: Supernatural

Pairing: Sastimmy/Jamstiel (Jimmy Novak/Sam Winchester/Castiel)

Rating: General

Tags/Warnings: Half-Fae Sam Winchester, Jimmy and Castiel Are Twins, Selkie Jack Kline, Sam Winchester Is Jack Kline's Adopted Father, Charlie Is A Human Badass, Reasonable Worker Expectations, Jack Kline's Birthday Part One

Summary: May was usually pretty busy for a cafe, but Sam always closed shop for Jack's birthday. This year, with two new employees under his domain banner, would be no exception.

For: @fluffyfebruary challenge!

Prompt: Day 5: Planet

Read on AO3

MAY WAS A busy time for Lighthouse CommodiTeas, at least relatively speaking. Avalon, New Jersey, wasn't a very large borough and most of the tourists who made their way out to Seven Mile Island were looking for a place like Starbucks. Coffee shop dates were, however, a rather traditional option, and Lighthouse CommodiTeas was a very cozy spot with delicious, literally magical drink options and a welcoming atmosphere that managed to imply intimacy without expectation. In fact, one of the draws of the cafe was the implicit promise that the staff would be completely non judgemental about whatever sort of gender identity or partner numbers might come in so long as everyone was happy and consenting... and that same staff would also intervene swiftly, safely, and decisively if such was not the case.

It was therefore a mild frustration to some of the prospective or regular customers when the cafe would close completely, without fail, every May eighteenth, no exceptions. Some of the regulars were good enough friends with the owner, a half-fae who went by "Sam", to know that the reason for this was because of his young son's birthday, and generally assumed that the cafe was closed to allow father and son to celebrate the day together privately without putting undue strain on the cafe's sole other barista. Charlie was wonderfully competent mixing magical drinks despite being fully human, and just as unwilling to take any shit as her boss if she was caught working the front alone for a few minutes, but a whole nine hour shift alone would have been a ridiculous thing to ask and the more reasonable customers agreed.

When the cafe gained two new staff members to fill in for Charlie when she had days off, and those two stayed on and even upgraded the quality and quantity of the previously limited (and human made) baked goods offered at the cafe, a few optimistic souls hoped that this meant that Lighthouse CommodiTeas would now stay open on the eighteenth of May. The new staff members were still fully human, if a little quirky, but there were three of them now, so surely they could handle a day without their super magically powerful boss, right?

Apparently not.

The doors were closed and locked the evening of the seventeenth with the usual notice posted in the glass of the front door, and when the eighteenth dawned they remained shut. Down the street at The Black Cats' Kettle, an off-duty Charlie tucked herself into a booth with a book and headphones as per usual. When the waitress, Alicia, asked oh so casually if she'd be joined this year by her handsome new coworkers, Charlie just laughed and shook her head.

Meanwhile, several miles away in Philadelphia, a young boy sat on his father's lap, a pair of dark-haired young men holding hands seated next to them, all of them looking up in bright-eyed wonder as the newly eight-year-old got to enjoy his very first planetarium show about the human and magical history of Mars exploration.

#fluffy february 2024 #rk writes #supernatural fic #sastimmy #sam winchester #jack kline #jimmy novak #castiel #urban fantasy au

[ohanny]

i finally got to sit down and enjoy so here is cutie pie 2 you episode 3 reaction/recap mess :'D

ok i just typed it into youtube search bar and i saw the 3/4 thumbnail of nuer and syn and am screaming already so that's great

zee's hands are large and i am not sure what i should do with this information

kuea exactly how big of a dumb dumb do you feel like right now?welcome to being an adult, where you can have both marriage and a career wow

i am so glad lian is so chill like yes king, communicate, explain to this dumb dumb we are out of high school (also i am glad this is like a 4 episode arc because you know if this was a full 12 episode season this drama would have been milked for hours)

zee's jawline makes me feel things and stuff

kuea is an adorable baby though, practicing his stage presence

lian and yi ahahahaha

WHEN ARE WE GETTING TAEKWONDO MASTER KON DIAO PLS

bitches do love a good montage. i am bitches.

will these two ever get any cooking done on these counters

oh they are actually planning a barbie dream wedding together. this is such character development. but nooo, is kon diao out of a job now? YOU DID GREAT SWEETIE

lian is working double time being both a dad and a daddy, someone give this man a raise

kuea: i am saving myself for marriage

lian: while i respect your decision, i will make it very difficult

that is going to be one cold shower

whoever swoops max's hair like that also needs a raise

diao: we are so early we're lucky the employees got here first

yi: lian commented on me being late once so now i have the neurotic need to add all potential events from a mechanical breakdown to car sex into the estimated travel time

diao: why are u like this?

diao: i'm just a babyyyy

yi: when did i ever scold you

diao: *whips out a receipt so long you'd think we're watching one of those extreme coupon-ing shows*

wayyyy to change a subject yi

to be fair, if he said my name in the "nong diao" tone i would marry his scolding (hot) ass and red flag trust myself to change this man for the better over time

still holding onto a hope of a grey's anatomy wedding switcheroo :')

diao lowkey pissed about the most unromantic proposal ever

i am not looking at poppy's thighs i swear

when has foei ever been okay lol

the way i thought kuea was wearing taylor swift "blank space" merch for a second there hahahaha

lmfao these two literally have zero clue about what is going on in their own wedding

lian: yi will be here soon

yi: has been there for 5 hours at this point

diao you smol boba ball alskdlaaslkdfj

syn has a cute pout and bangs that tickle his eyeballs and i will literally physically fight anyone who says one bad word against him. i don't care he's fictional. he is my precious.

literally everyone at this wedding:

foei knows he done fucked up and oh my god, diao officially pulls the best disgusted faces in this show. mention mustard yellow and he looks like you killed his dog.

OH MY GOD DID THEY REALLY JUST PUT NUER AND SYN AT A KID'S TABLE IN THE BACKGROUND?! THE INJUSTICE!

look at these boys actually participating in planning their own wedding the day before

lian: fix this or you are fired

kuea: babe <3

foei: i love how my financial security is a joke to you all

NUER AND FLOWERS pls it is a crime this couple gets no attention because obviously they be coupling better than anyone

WHY IS DIAO AIR SWIMMING OUT OF THE SHOT WHAT IS GOING ON AHAHAHA

nuer and syn making up excuses to ditch their friends as if they would notice if they suddenly disappeared at this point ◔_◔

i love how yi is just like that's it, i don't want to be sober anymore

OOOH so they didn't just wanna fuck this is a bachelor party, yes yes, i get it now :D

kuea surprised his best friends showed up at his wedding like did you actually invite anyone?!?! how?!?!?!

nuer: i am healed

syn: and i am honest lalalalalala

are you even besties (derogatory) if you don't do synchronized wine sipping at an abandoned pool on the eve of a wedding and express your emotions in the most businesslike manner ever?

again, i do not have eyes and thus am incapable of noticing max's thighs

EVEN THEIR TOES ARE ANGLED IN A PERFECT MIRROR IMAGE

lian: i am the happiest man on the planet right now

yi: lol let me try and change that

THEY FLUFFED MAX AND GAVE HIM STUBBLE :)))))

oh yi you need therapy

not nuer and syn and their evening prayers and a pillow wall because of course there is only one bed and no blankets because why would there be

me: you know he can't just kiss it better every time

diao: shhh

ooooh, early season one confident gay nuer making a bold comeback

biting my first, screaming, crying.... you have no idea how excited i am about tutor and yim having their own series

YIM LOOK AT YOU *jumps out the window*

damn nuer, you and your... lessons ˙ᵕ˙

so when is their show dropping anygays? asking for a friend.

STOP INTERRUPTING THEM FOR COMEDIC EFFECT YOU COWARDS

ooooooh just casually stargazing here, by the ocean, on a blanket nailed down with lit candles as one does, like a sexy fire hazard

yes, lian is making this waiting for our wedding thing very hard

also zee is like a schrödinger's twink or something because give that man a polo and he looks like a stiff wind could knock him over but have him take his shirt off and suddenly it is laundry day helloooooooo

how on earth can all these people unbutton shirts one handed like what is this skill and on which level of gay do i unlock it???

lian: can i play with you instead?

kuea: hiaaa

gravity: oops ◔w◔

as someone who has done it on a beach let me tell you no amount of blanket will protect you from sand. anakin skywalker hated it for fucking REASON so for once i am going to say keep those pants on, it is not worth it

yes. you do not want a chafed raw booty crack for your actual wedding night.

okay i said you can have a marriage and a career but if i had zee promising to make me the happiest person in the world i would straight up forget cosmic-exo hahahahaha

oh. my. god. they will be in the rain. wet.

... WAIT A FUCKING SECOND.

WEREN'T WE SUPPOSED TO SEE PERTH IN THIS?

DID I HALLUCINATE THE TEASER AT THE END OF THE LAST EPISODE?

SHOW PERTH YOU COWARDS!

#cutie pie the series #cutie pie 2 you #episode reaction recap whatever #tutor and yim are coming for my throat #i do love the sweet taste of proper communication

[tobiasdrake]

Ranking Octopath Traveler 2 Characters on the Bestie Scale

I've been ruminating on this one. I didn't do a Fight Me Bruh for Octopath 2 because these are all powerful RPG characters so obviously I lose instantly to every single one of them and I didn't do a Bestie for Rain Code because I felt like half of the characters would just be regurgitating what I'd already expressed vividly about them and the other half would just be me going "Yo, that's a fascist," over and over.

But finally, here it is. I'm ranking the Octopath Traveler 2 cast from Most to Least Bestie.

Agnea Bristarni This should come as no surprise to anyone who was with me through my playthrough of Octopath 2. Agnea was my main character and that was a decision I did not regret for a second. She's vibrant, unapologetically kind, and wants good things for people - and entirely willing to do whatever it takes to get those good things. Beware the nice ones.

In a game where the villain's core philosophy is "Having to live is agony, and escaping that fate is a mercy," Agnea is the antithesis of their entire belief system. She fully, thoroughly enjoys life and tries to instill that same enjoyment in everyone she meets. She's a walking celebration of the sheer beauty and magnificence of existing in the world.

Top-tier bestie, bar none.

Ochette How can you not get along with Ochette? She's a happy-go-lucky child that brings you meat. Apart from her inability to comprehend complex societal issues (a product of her youth and inexperience), there is nothing wrong with her.

And even then, there are worse character flaws to have than "Maybe too forgiving." That's the kind of thing you write in the "greatest weakness" section of a job application to puff yourself up.

Temenos Mistral Gonna be honest, I was not expecting to like this guy when we first met him. I'm not very religious and he's literally an Inquisitor. That title is a red flag all on its own.

But as we got to know him, the relationship Temenos has with faith hit me very deeply. I was going to say "his" faith but in a sense, it isn't. Not really. Temenos works for the Sacred Flame church but he refuses to internalize their dogma, insisting that even the heavens themselves are not above scrutiny.

For as standoffish and full of himself as he is, Temenos is a lonely guy. It's hard not to be when you're a high-ranking church employee whose system of belief borders on heresy. But he values his friendships far more than he's willing to admit, and he and I see eye to eye far more than I anticipated.

Throné Anguis Throné deserves friends. She's had to live a hard life for so long that she's barely even had the opportunity to figure out who she even wants to be in this world. Where other characters stories are all about expressing who they fundamentally are as a person, Throné's story ends with her attaining, for the first time in her life, the ability to go off somewhere and do the same.

We don't really know who Throné is because by the time the final credits roll, she hasn't had a chance to live yet. She's hatching from her chrysalis when we leave her.

What she needs right now are good friends who will give her space to find herself without pressure and maybe help her discover new things along the way. And also help her avoid the myriad social cults looking for isolated and naive people that they can scoop up and indoctrinate. Though she does already have some experience with that.

Hikari Ku Okay, I'm going to need to qualify the fuck out of this placement because Hikari is the nicest and sweetest guy ever. So I need to clarify that I think Hikari and I would get along fine. I have absolutely no beef with him as a person. I just don't think we would hang out very much, or have much to talk about when we did.

First, because of the logistics of the thing. Hikari is the fucking king of a nation. A nation in chaos following civil war, violent upheaval, and a complete cultural overhaul from imperialistic ways that have served their country for decades. This man is going to be intensely busy for the rest of his life. When he's not fending off assassination attempts by people dissatisfied with the sweeping changes he's trying to introduce.

But also because, for all his strong moral fiber and rigid integrity, he's not very fun to be around. His personality begins and ends at his duty to his people. His Crossed Paths events with Agnea demonstrate this well; He's a good man with a good heart and strong convictions, but a boring date.

Castti Florenz Castti's in a similar boat to Hikari. She's very nice. She has good ideas and good beliefs. But she works herself to death so much that I doubt we'd ever see each other outside of official apothecary work. She also travels a lot as part of her profession, so more often then not she wouldn't even be in the same part of the country as me.

I would love to have Castti as my doctor. She's motivated, compassionate, and eager to take on whatever is ailing you. But unless I signed on with Eir's Apothecaries myself, it would be logistically difficult to even become her friend in the first place.

But if I pulled it off, I think Castti would be a nice friend to have, but perhaps an overbearing one. Castti tends to take on a maternal quality in her relationships with others. She's not a member of the group; She's Team Mom. That's nice of her, but I've been a grown-ass man for a while now. That's not what I'm looking for in a friendship.

Partitio Yellowil It's hard not to love Partitio. He's a well-meaning guy with strong values that I agree with: That poverty is a terrible evil, and we should work to eradicate it. Unfortunately, he's a bit naive insofar as his ability to recognize capitalism's complicity in that evil. He sees commerce as the cure for poverty, which is. Like. Oh, you dear, sweet, naive soul.

He's got one foot in the door of recognizing the value of socializing vital programs. He supports labor rights and has even led collective action himself. The main thrust of his conflict with the Roque was over Roque wanting to privatize the steam engine versus Partitio wanting to share it for collective good. Like. He's right on the cusp of getting it a lot of the time.

His willingness to forgive is nice. His eagerness to put the people who created the problems back into power because "As long as they report up to me, it will be fine!" is incredibly foolish. I think Partitio is a good guy who means well and I wish I could place him higher, but I also think we would wind up bickering pretty heavily over economics any time we hung out.

For most people, a disagreement over politics isn't necessarily a dealbreaker. But Partitio's economic philosophy is more or less his entire personality so if we don't see eye to eye on it then we're going to get into fights. I love the guy, I just would have a hard time being around him for an extended period of time.

Osvald V. Vanstein I didn't like Osvald's story more or less from the moment I started it. "Hard man embarks on revenge quest because his woman/women were murdered" is a story that I'm just so over. Osvald the Story was bland for me. But Osvald the Character was. Like. He's fine. Serviceable in the role of Vengeful Hard Man, sure.

But then I got to the end of it. Where he's reunited with his daughter and discovers that his love for her is, in fact, the greatest magic in the world. And then, high on this revelation, he promptly dumps her on the nearest female-shaped person so he can go do anything else but raise his child.

That left me cold. Even if Elena doesn't remember him because Magic, he has a responsibility to her. Instead, he pawns her off on his research assistant without even asking the poor kid what she wants. The man she thought was her father tried to sacrifice her for magic, her true father rescued and defended her, and then he's out of her life before she even knows what happened.

Osvald is a neglectful workaholic who abandoned his child moments after reclaiming ownership of her. Everyone in my household has parental issues. He would not be welcome here.

#octopath traveler 2 #octopath 2 blind play #besties

[kikiiswashere]

Climb

I went camping and hiking this weekend. While clambering over a boulder field, my hiking partner mentioned how much forearm strength is needed to pull yourself up over rocks. Naturally, my thoughts immediately went to Silco and his forearms. As one does.

Here is a quick, modern AU, fluffy one-shot about climber Silco and his GN!climbing partner.

Warnings: None, SFW

Pairing: Silco/GN!reader, established relationship

Note: As great as my weekend was, I come home sick, so please forgive any spelling/grammar errors. My brains feel all mushy and my body can't decide if its hot or cold

---------

After hauling your dusty, sweaty body over the ledge, you paused to breathe and take in the view. Below you: forest. Swells of green leaves jostled in the breeze under your feet, sounding as much like the ocean as it looked. Intermittently, tall cones of evergreens and firs poked their heads up from beneath the green waves.

Speaking of the ocean, it lay beyond the trees and past the craggily rock shoreline. Deep and steady, despite the breeze. Fishing and sight-seeing boats dotted the water. You were currently too far up the mountain to smell the brine.

The sun shone brilliantly, warming your cheeks and the rockface you were currently perched on. Closing your eyes, you tilted your face up towards the sky and took a deep, satisfying breath in, rib cage stretching pleasantly as your lungs filled to capacity.

“Time for a break?”

Silco’s voice broke you from your reverie. Eyes squinting open, you watched your climbing partner plop beside you, long legs dangling over the edge with next to yours.

“Yeah, I wanted to take in the view anyhow,” you replied, nodding out at the horizon.

Silco nodded and shouldered off his backpack. He unzipped it and pulled out two granola bars, handing one over to you. Smiling, you took the offering. After a moment of quietly munching and gazing at the sight laid out in front of you, Silco looped an arm around your shoulder. A butterfly beat its wings against your heart and you leaned your head against his shoulder.

 You and Silco had been seeing each other for almost year, having met at a climbing gym in Zaun. You had moved to the city for a job and didn’t know a single soul. One night, while scrolling through the Groupon app on your phone, an ad for a local rock-climbing gym caught your eye. You considered yourself outdoorsy and athletic. Downloading the coupon, you made plans to go the following evening.

You arrived at the gym after work, and immediately doubted your decision. The room was large and bright, tall jagged plastic rocks peppered with neon hand and foot holds arced and jutted all around. People decked out in harnesses, tight shoes, and chalk scurried up the walls like spiders. Who were you kidding? Rock-climbing wasn’t for you. Hiking? Scrambling over boulders? Camping? Yeah, you could do that. Not defy gravity and laugh in its face.

Before you could slide back out onto the streets, a young man (a gym employee by the looks of his shirt and confidence) stopped and greeted you. His name was Silco. He was tall and lean, with bright blue-green eyes, dark hair swept back in a bun, and forearms . . . his forearms . . .

Your focus on his forearms was quickly gave way to the smile he gave you. Endearingly uneven teeth with what looked like a small chip in the two front ones. With that smile, he corralled you back into the gym and showed you the ropes – literally.

You were delighted to find that you took to rock-climbing like a fish to water. . . or, rather, a goat to mountain. What was more, you enjoyed it! What was even more, you enjoyed gym manager Silco’s company. He seemed to enjoy yours, too. Enough to ask you out a couple months after joining the gym.

Several successful dates, climbing trips, and moving in together is what had led up to the current camping trip you were taking together. The first few days you did aided climbs. Today, you had convinced Silco to do a strenuous hike instead; your groin had chafed pretty badly during the previous day’s climb and you needed a break from a harness. The hike still took you both up the face of the mountain, but instead of needing equipment, the trail guided you over large boulder fields and up rockfaces with the use of iron rungs.

“Ready to go again?” Silco asked.

“Sure,” you nodded, getting to your feet. He held out a large hand and helped you to your feet.

Reshouldering your packs, you both began back up the trail. Easy conversation flowed between the two of you, the soft crunch of stone beneath your hiking boots coupled with an easy breeze created a comforting atmosphere. Following the blue blazes painted onto the trees and rocks led you both to the next ladder up the mountain.

“After you,” Silco said, presenting the way up with a flourish of his sculpted forearms.

You shimmied up the ladder. It was a longer than the previous, and curiosity got the better of you. I peeked down to see the ledge below and Silco staring up at you, a lilting smirk on his lips. You snorted and continued up.

“What are you laughing at?” he asked as he joined you on the ledge above.

You rolled you eyes and said, “Why am I getting the feeling that you’re having me go up the ladders first so you can look at my ass?”

Silco barked a laugh and stepped closer, crowding you against the mountain. “And what if I am? You stare at my forearms while we climb. Can’t I watch a part of you I admire?”

You chuckled, grabbing his forearms and pulling his closer. His hands cupped your shapely rear as your face tilted up to capture his lips.

------

Note: Thanks for reading! The doctor told me that comments and reblogs will cure what ails me <3

#silco #silco x reader #silco fluff #silco's forearms #silco fanfic #silco x you #fluffy

[do-i-look-like-a-doctor]

The camp counselors as hamster breeds/your pet hamster because I have to much time on my hands

______

Jacob: syrian hamster

he’s big and normally sweet but sometimes is an asshole

find him at majority of stores staring at things and running around like a lil freak

himbo typa energy he probably escapes his cage and gets confused abt it then proceeds to go back inside the cage and gets even more confused

will absolutely rock your shit for a piece of corn don’t even think about fighting him off

feels bad for messing up your stuff yet keeps doing it

eats chargers and most clothing material

he owed you at least 237$ in clothing cost

big guy absolutely busted his wheel more then once and cried every time

would be the first one to get sucked into a vacuum

your his favorite person until someone gives him a treat then he tells you to kick rocks via scratching

no thoughts just vibes

eats blue crayola chalk

look me in the eye and tell me he ever had a coherent thought. i’ll wait

9/10 basic jock boy with attachment issues type of hamster

Nick: campbell’s dwarf hamster

let’s be real you probably got him because he was the only one left

funky interactive lil dude with spunk

he’s the reason you lock your pencils away

would just chill on the couch and watch tv all day if allowed

type of hamster to try and run away at every chance and expects you to chase him

when you don’t chase him he gets confused and eats a shoe lace or something

needs a gf desperately he’s lonely and for what?

dumb lil shit would get scared at his own reflection

eats chalk

but like really eats chalk

mf dies every time you take it away

only ever up in the morning so he wakes you up with frantic wheel running, water drinking, and probs escapes so often that he’s just next to your face most mornings

nerdy dude, likes to watch you do work

type of hamster to crawl behind your wall and disappear for three weeks then show up in the bathroom

enjoys watching you cook but judges every decision you make by sneezing

8/10 ‘not like other hamsters im a heartthrob’ type of hamster

Dylan: syrian hamster

you’re his best friend

one of the friendliest out of the bunch he loves to crawl on you

goofy af he rolls around and get stuck in tubes or manages to fall off tables

can’t normally think straight so he just follows you

most likely a rat in disguise but he’s soft so you let him stay

one of the few you found in the wild aka stuck in a shoe box

gets offended if you don’t leave the tv on for him before you leave the house

gets offended when you leave in general

missing a foot but somehow is faster then you

the only hamster to even tolerate being dressed up and he likes to wear tiny hats

also a nerdy lil dude but he pisses on your paper work

does this thing where he hides his food, forgets said food, bites you for more, then repeats the process

he doesn’t look like a doctor but is almost always at the vet

probably because he eats the chalk

9/10 ‘listens to piano music in your car and rolls off the radio’ type of hamster

Ryan: robo dwarf hamster

bit every single employee at the store and hates having his cage cleaned

touch his stuff you lose a finger sort of deal

probably that one hamster you got as a gift or something

despite having a huge ass cage (like basically a 100 gallon tank) he is always escaping and burrowing into the couch

clueless most of the time and gets awkward when you dig him out of the cushions

normally anxious and does this funky lil ‘shimmy shimmy im having a panic attack’ dance when you open his cage door

warms up eventually and allows you to poke him around a lot

becomes a pushover you could roll him like a piece of sushi and he’d be fine with it

don’t let him near anything sharp he’ll pick it up with hamster might and throw it around

the only one who is a little shit when it comes to his water cause if it’s not fiji water in the bottle he’ll literally dehydrate himself

watches the other hamsters eat chalk like a judgmental old man

doesn’t get lonely and likes being alone so if you get in his space to often he’ll just square up

10/10 ‘lil shit but he’s just awkward so it’s okay he’s cuter’ type of a hamster

Max: a ferret

only thoughts and vibes around this wiggley dude

had a fascination with hats and being stupid

stupid is to strong of a word but he doesn’t think through most things

gets stuck in the weirdest situations

you found him trapped in the spice cabinet with a shoe lace around his paws once

likes to cuddle into your side and if his partner, laura, is there be prepared

these two tiny demons like to attack your clothes and will happily live under your shirt

don’t let max outside he gets anxiety

wears an ‘im nervous’ vest like a baby

out of all the hamsters and ferrets alike he’s the sweetest and most docile

only time he was ever mean was at a petsmart when he screeched at a worker for taking plastic out his mouth

him and laura are a duo you found them together outside in a field

laura was trying to fight off a scarecrow

max was digging in the dirt and ran to you immediately cause human=safe

easiest one to handle besides nick and that’s saying something because you still get tired chasing after max

8/10 ‘I didn’t ask for pickles so my girlfriend fought the worker for me’ type of ferret

Abigail: White Russian dwarf hamster

baby girl is so shy and for what?

she hides behind your arm when someone new is in the area

saw a mirror once and had a literal stroke you were about to bury her but she woke up

gets excited over the little things with you like new treats, toys, or in general affection

the best one to keep around you at all times cause she doesn’t try to unalive herself

or you, for that matter

leaves clothes and cords alone but will fuck up cardboard like it’s a buffet

would be the one to fight something bigger then her, get scared about it, scurry back to you, then try again later

likes to watch you cook and eats the veggies you leave out

you have to full on pick her up with an iron fist in order for her to drop the food

her favorite thing: stepping in paint and crawling on blank papers

also eats chalk but the teacher’s chalk

the best hamster but don’t introduce her to someone new she’ll implode

10/10 ‘home-girl with a big butt and mass anxiety’ type of hamster

Emma: syrian hamster

another friendly syrian but she’s not like other hamsters she’s the ✨grey✨ colored one

the most fun one to take out on trips besides dylan

very outgoing, loves meeting new people and attention from most

bites little kids

who let her out of the cage tho? she’s insane but in a good way

take her to walmart and she perches on your shoulder while chewing up a face mask packet

the most photogenic hamster she likes to mess with your phone by tapping it with her paws and clicking random apps open

choked on a strawberry twice

eats chalk but the crayon shaped ones

unlike dylan she’s not a fan of being dressed up but does enjoy being pampered

expects you to massage her tiny muscles and give her cucumber every day

you signed this a contract when getting her and part of it was everyday is hamster spa day so you have to do it

when you brought abi into the equation she literally destroyed her cage in order to do say hello because new lady friend

you had to repair a wall that day and got sent to the hospital

she is the only one who likes to lick your cheek

8/10 ‘influencer hamster that everyone watches on tik tok livestreams’ type of hamster

Kaitlyn: white winter dwarf

no cause she’s not having this idea of being pet and never will

don’t you dare think about picking her up often she will do as she pleases

sleeps majority of the day but for some reason at exactly 5pm she runs on her wheel for an hour

deep down she likes you it just takes about 3 weeks for her to come around

doesn’t eat chalk but encourages it because hehe funny

the most organized and active, her enclosure is a million different tunnels and it’s like going through a maze to find her

you gave her new tubes and she immediately used them to make an the most complex housing underneath her bedding

you know how in the game she’s the camp coordinator? she still is even as a hamster

she is the culprit who convinces everyone else to escape or do things

somehow lead a march upon you one night because she was hungry

she loves you but she’s not the most affectionate and kinda scary

tends to break into Dylan’s cage and take his stuff before you can stop her

frantic wood chewer she basically a beaver at this point

her cage is yellow themed and when you try to switch it up she gets emo and runs away forever but comes back because ‘omg it’s scary outside’

tolerates literally nothing will not be wearing tiny hats but she will enjoy the occasional pampering

8/10 ‘would rob a bank with a smile on her face’ type of hamster

Laura: a ferret

what makes you think she’d be a regular hamster? nah, she’s to difficult for that

so it makes sense her and max are ferrets

absolutely refuses your help in any aspect of her noodley life

you buy her new enrichment items and don’t even need to get them out the bag she finds them, opens them, and places them herself

independent queen

since her and max are so bonded she tends to stick with him a lot

she does enjoy running around with you though

sometimes she finds a way into your closet and just camps out in your clothes

steals everything under the sun

you took her outside one time and she managed to pop a car tire

determined to make everyone who has wronged you, her, and max’s life hell but she’s inside so what does she do? squeezes out of windows

much like nick she goes missing for a week then shows up in the bathroom

doesn’t eat chalk and is the only one to try and stop the others

likes halloween costumes and only matches with max

favorite food: whatever you’re eating

will fuck your shut up in order to get a crumb off your plate

a menace to society with an adorable face

9/10 ‘likes to teach her own ferret bf tricks and show them off to others’ type of ferret

enjoy these headcanons i made them half asleep

#the quarry #the quarry laura #the quarry max #the quarry dylan #the quarry ryan #the quarry jacob #the quarry emma #the quarry abigail #the quarry kaitlyn #the quarry nick #hamsters #these lil ratty people have my mind rolling #nick furcillo #laura kearney #max brinly #jacob custos #emma mountebank #abigail blyg #kaitlyn ka #dylan lenivy #ryan ezrahler #now wtf is this?

[dei360]

How Great Leaders Approach Diversity

Over the past 30+ years, I’ve observed that great leaders help each employee, manager, and colleague identify known and hidden biases that might lead to acts of discrimination, microaggression, or exclusion. The best leaders exhibit honesty and courage by going beyond rote training modules to educate everyone in the historic fact of systemic racism; not to shame the majority but to build perspective and empathy.

This remains rare, however. So how do leaders and organizations do it?

You’ve probably seen it first hand: leadership sets the climate of transparency and vulnerability in the organization (or lack thereof). Diversity flows naturally from proactive and non-discriminatory hiring practices driven by leadership that understands the business advantages of a representative workforce. Inclusion follows where CEOs, chief people officers (CPOs), and other executives lead through courage, truth, and example.

At its core, this has everything to do with prioritizing mental health. No company can claim a commitment to employee wellness until people can deal with their stresses or worries openly and find help. Of course, wellness extends to inclusion and belonging. Until historically excluded minorities, whether based on race and ethnicity or sexual and gender preference, can express themselves, dress, and share their ideas and perspectives openly – within social and business norms – creativity and innovation will suffer. More importantly, workplace belonging and wellness cannot emerge until everyone enjoys psychological safety and can bring all of their constructive thoughts, ideas, humor, and perspectives to work.

When it comes to execution, effective leaders and organizations first make their commitment known and set strategic goals around diversity (as above, this should include implications for the culture and employee engagement). Then, as an organization matures and progresses, it integrates consideration of diversity factors into every important decision and every aspect of the business – from eliminating biases in hiring, celebrating ethnic holidays, offering training where appropriate, to checking the culture itself for systemic biases. Ultimately, leaders make a public commitment to change, including openness in sharing data around hiring, pay, promotions, and minority representation in senior positions.

Diversity and Inclusion Confer Competitive Advantage

In the digital era we inhabit, literally everything organizations achieve depends on people. Everyone competes for the same talent, every successful leader understands they must compensate competitively, invest in employees’ learning and development, and provide the resources workers need to do their jobs effectively. Most know and believe in the overwhelming evidence that employee engagement drives higher productivity, better business outcomes, and lower attrition. Thus, failure to engage, include, and leverage the full talents of the workplace represents not only a moral lapse – it invites disaster. It exposes unfitness for executive office.

Great leaders know they won’t always get it right, but they work with other experts, listen to their employees, keep learning, and set the intention to create a vibrant, healthy workplace and culture that embraces diversity. This requires tremendous courage and empathy but results in stronger, more innovative and resilient organizations more capable of attracting and keeping top talent.

If we can help you on your journey, visit DEI360.org.

Leave a comment below, send us an email, or find us on Twitter.

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#diversity #inclusion #dei

[sockgate]

i made an observation when i saw the documentary. i wanna know your opinions over it as well. so basically dont get me wrong i really loved all the parts which had louis and his current band, i think all of them are hilarious and definitely respect and enjoy louis' company a lot and i also think that louis admires them a lot and is close with them. now saying this i also think that all the footage which were used regarding 1d was deliberately dull??? like for example at the beginning when they're showing the bts content from 1d era, i know that moment was describing louis' feelings regarding the band disbanding right but regardless of that dont you think a deliberate decision was taken to include 1d scenes where they just dont look like they are close or like yk amicable......and then after that both the scenes with niall and liam it was majorly kinda awkward and short lived and not as exciting you would think it would be and its interesting knowing that liam and louis were hanging out in the hotel room and the camera person only came when louis was leaving liam's room...it definitely could be that all the 1d boys, like louis, have been on camera 24/7 so their purpose of hanging out surely wouldnt include a camera.....but regardless dont you think the way 1d scenes were kinda presented in the doc was really dull and almost included no chemistry amongst the boys...like i feel like they could have used better videos. cause the way louis talked about 1d in the whole doc was very uplifting and different from whatever scenes that were used. now idk if it was cal's intention cause i read your post about cal aurand yesterday or it was charlie's intention, tbh i am sort of questioning charlie's motivation a little bit ngl...with how he brought up the kid and all that. or it was louis' choice personally....or maybe im thinking too much out of nothing that could also be a possibility. regardless what do you think about this?

hey anon, thanks for asking for my input!

regardless of what was filmed and what 1d footage was available, it does seem deliberate the way in which the footage was included. maybe that's just how the boys were backstage for that final show (very mellow, not speaking to each other much due to what was about to happen). and imo facing simon in that moment (which... why was he featured so much in the first place) couldn't have made them feel any better. the way that the voice over and interviews overtop of the footage did compliment that "they're beginning to drift apart" concept as well. it is very interesting to contrast the 1d scenes to lt band, they are portrayed very differently!

going back to cal, it's clear he had involvement with this to the point where the footage was provided without much pushback? since when was sony ever okay with louis speaking out after his time in 1d? i find it interesting about this is i'm surprised he was allowed to release the footage (since it contains their likeness while as a unit of 1d). if you consider the input cal had early on with the boys stunting and being photographed like zoo animals, i'd say him being at the la n1 show made perfect sense. he literally choreographed and participated in the stunt being carried out just like he was doing in the 1d days ten years back. bc what else is bg if not a sony stunt that has backfired in every respect from the start.

i know not everyone agrees and that's fine, but it seems to me that charlie knew exactly what he was getting into when he was brought on for the project (mid 2019, possibly earlier). i think the intent behind this is to solidify the underdog and misunderstood member of 1d and dad image. ultimately what came of that was this documentary. i think of it like this: charlie is an employee of louis. louis meets this director and has this overarching thing he needs to get rid of. he also has a tour coming up and has a team who'd rather sit on their ass than promote him properly (i don't think they're unable to do much with his circumstance, but i think sjpr and seven are to blame in some respects). and so charlie agrees to the terms. he comes with louis to events and promo and starts to record and bg begins unravelling the way it does (hello b setting herself on fire, hello boobgate). so louis makes the decision to have this be apart of his next move. and somewhere in there sony/simco and whoever the fuck else said, yes. take our footage and our content and do your thing. but do it our way. (i.e. simon and xf being huge parts of the start of the film and NEVER portrayed negatively). obviously, charlie deciding to participate in this to this extent is something that he agreed to. i don't necessarily agree with that choice, it seems like louis confides in him and trusts him to do this for louis and his career.

#saying “it means nothing” to something like cal being at the la show just ignores patterns and facts #obviously this is just a theory obvs but since when did people stop making those... #sorry if this is long and confusing #but thank you for the ask #asks #anon

[afireyearth]

aaa im sorry you lost your job :( are you okay with it/did you want to leave anyways?

Awe thank you 💗 it was kind of my decision kind of not. I have been having issues with my job for a long time, the shop owner is very shady and does some super unethical stuff. It came to a head last week when I had a meeting about reducing some of my responsibilities because I was so stressed out by them. They said if I reduced my responsibilities I’d have a reduction in pay, which I didn’t think was fair as I had been working there for 3+ years and was a key figure to running the store efficiently(and I haven’t gotten a raise in over a year…). after the meeting I came to the realization that it wasn’t worth any amount of pay to deal with their bullshit so I decided to be very up front with them on why I was reducing my responsibilities. They did not like what I had to say and couldn’t see keeping me on with a reduced role (which I had wanted to stay on as a part time employee until I found a new job) and said and it wouldn’t be financially beneficial for the store to keep me on when they could get someone else to do it for less. So, I got fired. And if you can’t tell from just the last interaction it’s definitely for the better.

I have to finish out my last two weeks with them (literally just so I can train the people who are taking over my responsibilities) and then I’m done. I’m super relieved to be leaving such a toxic environment but I’m also super sad that I’m going to be leaving all my coworkers. We’re all very good friends and enjoy working with each other everyday. I was very, very shocked by the fact that they let me go from the part time job because it’s very out of character of the shop owner to do so. Though, I can’t say I blame them. I was low key hoping they’d fire me because I was so disgusted by the way they treated me. So I’m the end it wasn’t entirely my decision but I’m not mad about it.

Thank you for asking and for checking in 💗💗 that is so kind of you!! I hope you’re having a nice day ☀️

#also we have been mutuals for the longest!!!! and seeing you in my notes brings me so much joy!!!! #I am not even lying/joking in the slightest when I say seeing you in my notes has been helping me get through these last few weeks!!! #so much love to you and yourssss!!!!! #I want nothing but the best for you #💗💗💗💗💗💗💗🥹💓🥰🥰🥰🥰🥹♥️💖💞💞💞💞💞💞💚💞❣️

[37q]

so the problem with sexual moralization isnt that we should be unconcerned with the breadth of sexual development because its embodiment will always be unproblematic, its that sexual development is tied so explicitly to our character that people will find any way possible to moralize the conditionality of their sexual development so that they can feel like a good person forever.

we literally cant address or repair like material social harm when were stuck waffling between conditional definitions of suffering. did you enjoy or desire it? did you sign a contract or make a deal? did you make even a single decision in the process? is this normal for you? are you a civilian, a criminal, a service-member, a clergyman or cult employee, a corporate actor, or a lobbyist?

harm is only for the innocent and suffering is for the pitiably responsible, state and capital and scarcity-society are so unwilling to invest in mixed or unpredictable assets... with enough political discourse were hard pressed to find anyone who deserves help. the modern state, and more recently the neoliberal paradigm, has been an exercise in scientifically paring the grace of society down to a commodity that we can all technically accept as living human beings with hearts. were not easily convinced but if something is indisputable, then... 🤷🏻‍♀️

all of these moral conditions of suffering imply like barely a kernel of responsibility deeper within each of us than were willing to broach because (a) it would destabilize all of our habitual -- at this point cognitive --superstructures that make navigating a world of precarity and unknowns loads easier (b) the modern / neoliberal paradigm relies on a sensual, natural society such that the evolution of the self, fueled with individualism and trance-like instinct, can allegedly only make the world a better place when its unconditionally intrinsic (c) abstracting material harm to the realms of inevitability, permanence, stability, and defensibility gives you all the forgiveness you need with none of stress of actually interrogating your social attachments and (d) cycles of power / guilt are fast-paced and cheap; our eyes are always clear and our hands are always clean as we greet the future like a stranger.

but even a nugget of responsibility shifts that dynamic to an exhausting, intimate commitment to doing better. we assume if we cant do it naturally then someone must be at fault which is just funny because "nature" and "fault" are like apples and space debris. the first mistake is caring, the second is hoping, the third is connecting with others, the fourth is acting unnaturally or thinking unrealistically.

unfortunately were not currently equipped to accept the consequences of heartfelt mistakes or the blunders of honesty and vulnerability because its horrifying to think about whats made you and what youve made of it, and frankly having stupid ideas (in retrospect) on your docket does not bode well for your social support. so if we try to make social living more social or livable were stuck the guilt of some stranger who thinks theyre not responsible.

[malachiexists13]

After finishing Mitsuhide's route for the second time, I decided to try and play Kenshin's. Which I started yesterday. I made this decision because Kenshin seems like an interesting character and he's probably one that even after two years of playing the game, I still know barely anything about. Like I know that he's the opposite of Chevalier in which when he falls in love with MC, he becomes more gentle. I know somewhat about him having a pet bunny. And I know the stupid reasons that historians assumed he hates women and came up with that theory that he was a woman. I also understand that Kenshin is described as yandere.. But if I could survive Mitsuhide's romantic route, I can survive Kenshin.

Who the fuck am I kidding. I made an entire post complaining about it.

But that's as far as my knowledge goes. Well, I also know that he has trauma or something and that he randomly assaults his employees as stated by Sasuke on more than one occasion but whatever. I can't remember what I thought of Kenshin back in 2018 when I first downloaded the game. I honestly don't even know if I acknowledged Kenshin back then. All I remember is the part in the prologue where Mai saves Nobunaga and then the part in chapter 1 of Nobunaga's route where he tries to use Mai as a cup. Dont- dont ask.

But after redownloading the game two years later? I still didnt care about Kenshin lol- It wasnt until I discovered the fandom side of things that I really started to pay attention to him. And the more I saw, the more intrigued I got. So now, here I am, playing Kenshin's route. I only started it yesterday so I cant say much but.. My opinion of him has already changed multiple times. And I dont know if thats a good sign since my opinions of the others remained mostly consistent til later on-?

Currently what I've noticed is that 1.) Kenshin does not seem to hate women. He was just raised on misconceptions and doesn't seem to have an interest in romance. Which- fair. And 2.) Kenshin reminds me of Mitsuhide in an odd way? As in the fact that he's telling Mai to live her life how she wants, to not let others dictate how she lives. He tells her to be herself. Not the whole he constantly teases her for his own amusement and for a reaction and makes her want to scream. Not that at all, I dont even know if Kenshin has a sense of humor. Leaning towards no. But, what he said is very similar to what Mitsuhide said in his route, except it was later on. Around the undercover mission part. Kenshin literally says this shit in chapter two, so mans is movin' a lil fast but thats alright.

Thats at least my current opinion. Kenshin seems to put up a front that he enjoys battle and bloodshed, but deep down he feels a sense of duty to protect others. Even if he doesn't acknowledge it himself, thats what Im noticing and thats the direction my brain went in. Which I guess adds up to the whole "he's secretly gentle" ending? Idk. But I currently have no problems with Kenshin's route. I actually find him to be a bit amusing rather than scary or anything negative. Barely one chapter in and I was already laughing at how stupid he can be.

Im not sure if I'll make another post like this as I play more. Or maybe I'll make an entire post explaining my opinion once I finish his route? Dunno yet.

#ikemen series #cybird ikemen #ikemen sengoku #ikesen #kenshin uesugi #ikesen kenshin

[maytheoddshq]

Dale Winter (he/him). Sponsor. Thirty-seven. Taylor Kitsch.

Born on a bed of dollar bills, Dale knew nothing but money. He was currently the only heir to the Winter estate, and after his parents realized they couldn’t have anymore children, he was spoiled rotten. Literally. He had never been told no, which resulted in a certain level of arrogance that he was known for later in life.

As a child, Dale was smart but lazy. He showed attributes of a gifted child, but quickly learned how to play the system rather than conform. He used to enlist the help of his housekeeper to do his homework, pay her with his pocket money. His teacher eventually caught him, but he just paid her off as well. When his parents eventually found out, they blamed the teacher and fired the housekeeper. Dale was never wrong, and this way of thinking is most likely what has ruined him in life.

Dale was popular, mostly because people were intimated by his wealth and status. Everybody wanted to be his friend, but he wasn’t much interested in social status or friends back then, still doesn’t have a huge interest today. He enjoyed making his parents squirm instead, took part in just about every rebellious act he could, and by the end of high school they gave up, bought him his own house so they could finally be rid of the responsibility. This only enhanced his rebellious streak, and when the house they had bought flooded as a result of a pool party gone awry, his parents just bought him another one.

His father, a hugely successful business man, eventually grew ill, the lavish lifestyle catching up on him, so Dale was forced to take over his duties at the company. The company being Panem’s largest corporation for public broadcasting. He didn’t do much, handing most responsibilities off to whoever was next in line, but he sat at his father’s old desk day in day out, young capitolites coming and going, adjusting their clothes on the way out. The employees ignoring anything that might come across as taboo, terrified that they may be fired at any given moment.

Even though Dale didn’t do much day to day, he was smart, smarter than he deserved to be, so with a quick glance at some numbers, he has the ability to make the right decision almost every time.

The family had a deep interest in the games, which was the biggest earner for their company, and every year they spent thousands of dollars sponsoring.

Dale took to this role with the same level of indifference he had for everything in life. He enjoyed being in a position of power though, he loved how people would walk on egg shells around him, hoping that he’d choose their district. Usually, in the end, he’d just roll a dice, but it was fun to see them squirm.

Dale is cocky, self important and elitist. He has little time for anyone below his status, but does have a weakness for pretty people who he can bring to bed. He enjoys the finer things in life, and has the money to get exactly what he wants. He is lonely though, struggles to build meaningful connections, and has a hard time trusting people— most in his life because he pays them to be.

Strengths: Confident, intelligent, sharp.

Weakness: Shallow, unsympathetic, self-righteous.

PENNED BY: Elle

#thg rp #hunger games rp #oc rp #lsrpg #new rp #dale #bio