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jebewonmorelike · 1 year

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Marshmallow Beach

wc: 3.3k pronouns: none used; n/a warnings: fairly angsty for most of it but i ended it pretty funny so there's something for everyone lmao, drowning but it's not real, mentions of financial struggle, probably an inaccurate description of cpr idk we never really learned it in school which is kind of bad lol summary: coworkerwithsomehistory!gyuvin decides to pull the meanest prank in the world on overbearingheadlifeguard!reader after an incredibly tense summer at the beach ~masterlist~ ♡ ~kofi (no pressure at all)~ i literally wrote most of this AT the beach, which was so fun. i was watching some of the lifeguards goof off together and i was like-- imagine zb1 as lifeguards. i feel like, with summer almost in full swing where i am, i will most definitely have to make more lifeguard!zb1 fics bc it's such a cute scenario. lmk if that sounds good to you. also the ending is so funny, i can picture gyuvin and the other boys perfectly in that scene UGH also i accidentally made gyuvin say his catchphrase in this, i wrote it and then i was like oh my god what... comment if you spot it

“It’s not that cold.”

You stare at the boy standing knee-deep in the ocean in front of you— his skin beginning to turn the same color as the water as his teeth chatter audibly over the crashing waves and the wind that’s suddenly picking up.

“Gyuvin, that’s enough—,” you start to scold, but the tall teenager continues to wade further into the sea. The waves are growing bigger and the sun has almost completely dipped past the horizon line.

“Hyung-ah, wait for me!” The youngest of the lifeguards calls, pulling his grey hoodie over his head and running off into the ocean after him.

“Gunwook-ah! I really don’t think you guys should be—.”

“Why are you always such a narc, (Y/N)?” Gyuvin shouts back at you, grabbing the younger boy and dunking him under the water as soon as he reaches him.

You sigh annoyedly. This was your fourth summer as a lifeguard at Village Beach; you’d been a fairly diligent and dedicated employee the past three years and at the beginning of this summer you’d been promoted to Head Lifeguard.

Your friend Taerae had been hired at the same time as you; Ricky and Gyuvin joining the team the year after. The previous summers you’d loved hanging out with your fellow lifeguard friends, goofing around on breaks, and, most importantly, being able to help beach-goers however you can. This summer, however, has been anything but enjoyable.

You’d needed the extra money before your junior year at college, so you didn’t think twice about taking the position as Head Lifeguard. But, boy… You should have. Now nearly every responsibility of the beach fell on your shoulders. There had been no time for fun, no time for friends and no time for…

“Gyuvin-ah, please,” you yell, watching as both Ricky and Taerae follow the two younger boys into the ocean until the water is up to their chests. “Are you kidding me!?”

“Can you lighten up for once!?” Gyuvin shouts back, rolling his eyes. “Oh sorry, I forgot: you’re a massive killjoy now!”

You see Taerae wince, but he doesn’t say anything. Of course that’s what they all thought of you now. You’d probably hate yourself, too. Yelling at the other lifeguards when they weren’t paying attention, handing out citations when they clocked in late, reporting back to your boss about any ways they had been lacking, blowing your whistle whenever one of them left their post unscheduled...

Everyone’s favorite co-worker had become the boss’s pet. Sure, it got you a few extra dollars on the hour, but was it really worth losing your friends? The nervous looks the new kid Gunwook gave you whenever you entered the break lounge? The multiple occasions where you’d walked into a restaurant after a shift to see all of your friends eating dinner without you?

The boy you’d had a crush on for three summers now calling you a narc; a killjoy?

You know you could’ve been a little easier on them. They were all great lifeguards; showed up and worked hard during early morning training and were (almost) always alert. But you’d only been trying to do your best and keep your position. The truth was, you desperately needed that extra money. It was the only way you were going to be able to buy your books next semester. And when your boss was always such a hardass, threatening to give the position to someone else if you couldn’t keep up...

But now all these boys only see you as a tyrant. A snitch. And undoubtedly a bad friend.

It’s a cool August evening; a party for the lifeguards before your last week of work. You were positive that you were the last person any of the boys wanted here, but Ricky had accidentally let the plan slip in front of you. Your longest friend, Taerae, had laughed awkwardly in an attempt to cover it up, walking over to you and telling you the details-- ensuring that they had just forgotten to let you know.

Though you knew the invitation was disingenuous, you’d showed up anyway. After all, it was right after your shift ended and on the beach where you work. Maybe you were just curious as to what they’d get up to. Maybe you were so starved for fun by now that you were willing to insert yourself in what had to be one of the most awkward bonfires you’d ever attended (because of your presence, of course).

And they probably wouldn’t believe you but maybe you really missed them.

“I finally got that girl’s number today,” Ricky says, taking a bite of the marshmallow on his roasting stick. “Before dinner break. She came up to me and started asking about sharks and I--.”

“Told her to stop bothering you while you were working?” You mumble to yourself before a scan around the now silent group informs you it had been audible. You look back down at your own gooey marshmallow, picking a piece off and popping it into your mouth. You knew exactly the girl Ricky was talking about. He’d admired her from afar since last summer, gushing to you, Taerae, and Gyuvin about everything she did each Friday that she came to the beach.

You should be congratulating him, but your brain has been so acutely re-hardwired this summer that all you could do was scold him for not doing his job.

“Hey, remember when you used to be nice?” Gyuvin asks suddenly, taking a sip from his can while his eyes remain locked on you.

“I’m not trying to be mean, I’m just--.”

“Just doing your job, we know. It’s one of your ten pre-programmed phrases,” he interrupts sarcastically. “Don’t say too much, Ricky. (Y/N)’s just gonna report it back to the boss anyway.”

“No, I’m not,” you reply, rolling your eyes. Much more quietly, you add, “I’m happy for Ricky.”

“Are you? Are you even friends with Ricky anymore?” Gyuvin continues his criticism. “Are you friends with any of us? You barely even know Gunwook! You yelled at him for jumping off his post instead of using the ladder before you even officially met him.”

You just stare back at him, well aware that everything he’s saying is valid. That doesn’t make it hurt any less. The disdain in Gyuvin’s eyes now is palpable. It’s hard to imagine that almost a year ago to the date, you’d sat together on the shore in the moonlight-- letting the waves crash over your feet as you told him how you wished that summer would never end. How he’d leaned over to you so that your right shoulder touched his left, his large hand finding its way on top of yours innocently. How, rather than annoyance in his eyes, he’d instead looked at you like he wanted to...

“Too good for us, huh? Go ahead, ignore me,” Gyuvin scoffs, shaking his head and taking another sip of his drink. You’d zoned out-- he was right. But if he only knew the actual reason... “See if I care. Why are you even here anyway?”

You let a moment pass in silence. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom,” you mumble to no one in particular; trying your best to hold in the flood of emotions that’s boiling beneath the surface. Taerae taps your arm as you walk past him, but you just nod passively in response-- continuing up the sand.

You take your time in the bathroom, staring in the mirror and willing yourself not to cry. When you return to the bonfire, there’s been a small but noticeable shift in the wind-- and the ocean is responding accordingly. That’s why you’re so shocked when Gyuvin suddenly pulls his sweatshirt over his head and runs towards the water with a devilish grin on his face.

And now that all four of your fellow lifeguards are up to their chests in cold, rising night waves, you’re more than a little pissed at Gyuvin. And the fear rising in your chest is becoming overwhelming.

“Binnie, I--,” you shout over the roar of the waves crashing at your feet but you know he can’t hear you. You can barely see him now; he’s under the water for at least ten seconds at a time as the waves grow even higher in the wind. “I promise I’m not trying to nag you, but you’re scaring me!”

The other boys look back at you from a bit closer to shore, weird looks on their faces. They turn to each other, now appearing wary but not really of Gyuvin’s safety. Taerae and Ricky keep looking back at you-- concern suddenly tangible in their eyes as they whisper to each other intensely.

Over the waves, you can faintly hear Gunwook calling to Gyuvin, “Hyung-ah, maybe this is--.”

Gyuvin shakes his head dismissively, stepping out further into the nearly black ocean-- a large wave rising in front of him. He turns around; smiling back towards the shore and giving a thumbs up.

“BIN-AH!” You cry as the giant wave collapses behind Gyuvin, hurtling towards the tall boy at rapid speed. If he was paying attention, the wave would be fairly easy for him to swim through. But he’s not. “BEHIND YOU!”

Before he can turn around, the wave overtakes Gyuvin-- submerging him under the water. You watch the surface, horrified as the wave knocks the other three boys off their feet before finally hitting your ankles in a soft foam. Seconds pass; the other boys eventually scramble to their feet, but...

Gyuvin doesn’t.

It’s twenty seconds. Twenty-five. Thirty.

You’re frozen in place. You’re a lifeguard-- you should be running into the water to find him. But you find yourself unable to move. Unable to breathe as if you’re the one underwater.

Luckily, the other three boys are swimming out to where Gyuvin is-- all three diving under the water before Ricky surfaces with something on his back. All three of them help carry the weight of the tallest boy between them, pulling him to shore laboredly.

When the water is finally below their knees, your body snaps out of its frightened paralysis as you finally get a good look at a seemingly unconscious Gyuvin. Running over to the boys and wrapping your hands around one of Gyuvin’s biceps to help support him, you help to drag him onto the sand.

Lying him down flat on his back, you kneel down over Gyuvin’s stomach-- a knee on either side of his chest. Placing an ear over his mouth, you check to see if he’s breathing. He’s not. Your panicked paralysis has now done a 180-degree flip; you’re so scared that any common sense has completely left your brain and you’re propelled into frantic action. You don’t even register that his heart is still beating strongly-- that you don’t have to be doing chest compressions or pinching his nose and connecting your lips to his to administer a rescue breath like you are right now...

Gyuvin’s eyes shoot open so quickly that the surprise jolts you off of him. You sit back upright on your knees over his stomach, watching as he blinks back at you wide-eyed.

The lack of salt water dripping from Gyuvin’s mouth suddenly stifles you. Something isn’t right about this.

Finally, he forces a laugh and his tone that follows is anything but frightened, relieved, pained, or any other emotions that someone who just nearly drowned might be exhibiting. “Really? Chest compressions? A rescue breath? Are you sure you’re Head Lifeguard? You seriously couldn’t tell I wasn’t actually drowning?”

You stare at him for a moment before glancing back at the other boys behind you. They look more uncomfortable than anything. Turning back to look at Gyuvin’s smirking face, which is albeit a little blue still from the water temperature, you realize you’re the only one currently experiencing any fear.

“What?” You whisper breathlessly.

“Gotcha,” Gyuvin says with a grin, lifting up on his elbows to look at the boys behind you. “I think that prank was a success.”

“You--... You weren’t drowning?” You ask, the reality of the situation sinking in. After this summer-- after what you’d said at the bonfire-- Gyuvin had decided to play this horrific prank on you to... what? Teach you a lesson? Get revenge? Traumatize you?

You turn to look at the other boys. “And you knew?”

All three of them already look regretful, heads hung slightly in shame. Now you realize that they’d been wary about this since you’d called to Gyuvin that he was scaring you. They’d turned to each other concernedly-- Gunwook had even tried to ask him to reconsider tricking you like this.

“What the FUCK is wrong with you!?” You shout, hitting Gyuvin’s chest with your hands as all of the tension spills out of you. “I thought you were gonna die! I thought you--... I thought you--...”

“What? Gonna tell the boss? Gonna write us up?” Gyuvin asks, far too sardonically. “Gonna--... Hey, wait, are you crying?”

Water is dripping onto Gyuvin’s abs and it’s not coming from the sky. The wind has lulled and the air is warm again-- the black night above the ocean dusted in thousands of clustered stars.

“Why would you do this? Do you hate me that much? All of you?” You ask, eyes fixed on the water. “I know I was the absolute worst all summer and I don’t think anyone is more upset about it than me! You think I don’t miss having fun with you guys!? This summer has been a literal nightmare.”

There’s cautious silence except the slow crashing of the waves.

“The truth is I really needed the extra money. I wouldn’t have been able to go to college next semester without it, so I’ve just had to tolerate being a miserable narc to my boss who keeps threatening to replace me-- all while having no friends during what used to be my favorite part of the year,” you confess, your dignified tears only growing more haggard. “I’m really sorry. I’m so, so sorry for everything, but why--... Why would you make me think that you--... ”

Your eyes are boring into Gyuvin’s now; his are wide and unnerved staring back at you. “I missed you so much,” you say softly, nearly inaudible over the murmuring of the ocean beside you. You know he heard you, though, from the way his body tenses under you. “But don’t worry: you’ve made it clear now you don’t feel the same.”

Your whole body is still a bit shaky from the adrenaline, but you manage to stand up-- stepping over Gyuvin and walking towards the other boys.

“(Y/N), we--,” Taerae starts an attempt at an explanation, but you’re less than interested.

Walking through him and Ricky, shoulders brushing unceremoniously as you head back up toward the recreation building, you mutter under your breath: “Jerks.”

You’re in the break lounge for at least ten minutes before the sound of the doors bursting open grabs your attention. It’s Gyuvin standing in the doorway, wearing his red and white hoodie again and a pair of grey sweatpants. He doesn’t say anything.

“Go away,” you threaten half-heartedly; even the energy to be rightfully mad at him has been sucked out of you.

“No,” he replies, stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. He leans his back up against it cautiously, obviously not wanting to upset you further by invading your space more than necessary.

You sigh deeply; it’s not angry or mocking. Just tired. “Do you need water? I know you weren’t actually drowning, but that had to hurt your throat-- holding your breath like that.”

“Don’t do that. Don’t be nice to me after I was just so mean to you,” the tall boy replies, shaking his head. “And I could’ve held my breath for five more minutes if I had to. State record holder: remember?”

You do remember. Gyuvin had told you about his swimming achievement two summers ago-- when he was just a newbie lifeguard at the beach. He’d bought you an ice cream sandwich out of the vending machine when you’d said you really wanted one. He bought you one every time after that that he’d caught you staring longingly at the machine.

“I’m really sorry.”

You both say it at the same time. It’s simultaneously painfully awkward and the greatest relief.

“I’m sorry for being so terrible all summer,” you say quickly, not wanting to have a back-and-forth over who’s gonna apologize first. “And I’m sorry for making you feel like I think I’m too good for you now or that I was purposefully ignoring you... and everything in between. I wish I could take it back, but I can’t. And I’m really sad that I can’t.”

“I completely understand that you needed the money. You deserve to go to school more than anyone I know. I just wish you would’ve told me,” he says, meeting your gaze. “I wouldn’t’ve judged you. And then I would’ve known why you’d started acting all... you know.”

You nod. “I know. I’m really sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” Gyuvin says after a moment; a sheepish smile creeps onto his face. “My turn, I guess.”

“Mmhmm,” you agree, narrowing your eyes at him. “Better be good, too.”

“First off, I’m incredibly sorry. I went way too far and it wasn’t cool at all. I really didn’t mean to scare you like that-- I kind of thought you’d just be a regular amount of worried or that you’d catch on that it was a prank faster but--.”

“Are you blaming this on me being too stupid to figure it out or...?” You ask, an eyebrow raising at him.

“NO! No, I didn’t mean that. I just... I was really upset, honestly. I’ve been upset this whole summer about you. And then on the one night you’re actually hanging out with us again, you were still acting the same way,” he explains, a hand raising to scratch his arm. “I just thought that if you didn’t care about me anymore then... maybe I could make you care about me again.”

“By... pretending to drown in front of me? A little toxic of you-- I hate to admit.”

“Definitely not the best idea I’ve ever had,” he laughs awkwardly, hand reaching for the back of his neck. “I’m really sorry, (Y/N). Are you okay?”

You nod, looking down at your hands in your lap. “Was really shitty of you, Binnie.”

“Really, really shitty of Binnie, I know,” Gyuvin says, a small pout on his lips. “That guy’s the worst.”

“He really is,” you agree, a smile threatening to peek through. “But you didn’t need to make me care about you again. I never stopped.”

He looks at you, eyebrows raising with surprise.

“I feel like I missed everything this summer. Ricky’s pining over that girl that eventually paid off, Taerae trying to throw Cheez-its from his post all the way to mine, our post-work lifeguard dinners,” you recount sadly. “But you know what I missed most of all?”

Gyuvin’s eyes are bright, but he shakes his head. “What?”

“Oh come on, you know exactly what I’m gonna say,” you tease with a disbelieving smile.

He smiles back, answering softly, “Wanna hear you say it.”

The way your stomach flutters is so stupidly joyful that it’s embarrassing. “You,” you say, indulging him. “I missed you most of all.”

“I missed you,” Gyuvin echoes, grinning like an idiot. “Like... SO, so much.”

You don’t care how embarrassing you’re being anymore-- you hop up from the couch and run over to Gyuvin, lifting up on your toes and throwing your arms around his neck. He picks you up off the ground for a moment-- arms supporting your back and waist as he roughs you up a bit in his typical big-dog-energy way. He places you back on the ground, hands still attached to your waist.

You remember the look that’s in his eyes now. It’s the same one he gave you that night on the beach last summer. Is he still too shy? Is he unsure after all that happened this summer?

It’s obvious what he wants to do. Maybe you could make up for everything this summer by helping him out here...

“Your lungs must be aching, Binnie,” you start, smiling up at him sweetly. “Surely it must hurt at least a little bit to breathe now.”

Gyuvin frowns, shaking his head. “No, I’m all good! I could do it again actually if I had to.”

You narrow your eyes at him, kicking his shin lightly with your foot. “It must be so difficult for you to breathe on your own right now,” you overly emphasize each word in hopes that he catches on. “Maybe you need some more rescue breaths...”

“I don’t need--,” Gyuvin starts to deny again before his eyes suddenly widen. “I--... Oh... Uh... You know what-- you’re right! It turns out I really do need some rescue breaths after all of that. And you know, you were so good at administering them before...”

You press up on your toes again and Gyuvin carefully leans down to meet you-- your lips finding his in a long-anticipated kiss. It’s tender and his soft lips taste and feel like roasted marshmallows. You pull back, smiling at each other shyly.

“C’mon, I’ll drive you home,” he says, hand around your waist as he pulls the door open behind him.

THUD. Thud. Thuddd.

Ricky, Taerae and Gunwook look up at you from the floor-- apparently having fallen down when the door they’d been pressed against was opened.

“Hear anything good?” You ask, eyebrows raised expectantly.

All three boys mumble their apologies as Gyuvin leads you through the doorway past them. You turn around to call back to them, “Hope you guys clock in at 7:30 sharp tomorrow morning! Ricky, you’re running out of Level 1 citations.”

“Wait, what!? I thought you were gonna be super chill again from now on!” Ricky exclaims.

Taerae nods. “Yeah, didn’t you just apologize for being annoying all summer?”

“I got a citation last week for being three seconds late,” Gunwook says frantically. “THREE! I can’t do this anymore!”

“Whoah, whoah, whoah, that’s enough fellas,” Gyuvin says, popping his sunglasses on (indoors and at night). “You all better be compliant from now on. (Y/N)’s got a job to do and if any of you get in the way, you will be answering to me. Well, after you answer to (Y/N), of course.”

Tightening his grip around your waist, Gyuvin leads you down the hallway of the beach recreation building and out the doors into the warm summer night air.

“We’ve been bamboozled,” Taerae whispers.

Ricky groans, “And we still have to show up to work at 7:30 tomorrow morning.”

Gunwook twitches. “... THREE!”

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necronatural · 9 months

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Project Moon Discourse part 6: It's Over (It's Never Over)

My project moon tag is dedicated exclusively for details on this situation make of that what you will

Last time on Project Moon: Geonggi Youth Union and Project Moon User Association (protesting fans faction) gets a legal threat from a an actual legal firm (none of them say as much, but the contents appear to be specified to the Youth Union, so likely a copy-pasted message). PMUA were asked to not ragepost until the Youth Union finished talks with Project Moon, but THAT completely fell through, so they just post it with a translated reply. Kim Jihoon gets MAD mad and says that the Geonggi Youth Union were going after PM to promote their campaign standing! Youth Union says what the fuck are you talking about, how would we do this when it was being handled internally and the public would only see us apologizing? The crux of all this legal threatening is because Vellmori resigned, therefore it wasn't 'unlawful dismissal'.

And now some new updates:

IT union vice chairman Hwanmin Kim realizes that on September 8 the Limbus Company Twitter sent him a cease and desist. Over Twitter DMs. I'm not kidding

A user has translated Hwanmin Kim's explanation of why talks broke down with the Geonggi Youth Union in this Twitter thread. In short: unless Vellmori expresses a desire to be reinstated their hands are tied, as the laws don't adequately protect workers. It seems the "political motivations" accusation is rooted in the fact that the YU is respecting that they can't represent Vellmori's worker rights unless she asks, yet are still campaigning against PM regardless.

The surrounding climate of Korean gaming companies policing women's speech and how the PM case blew up because of that climate has been recorded in a news article that tracks situations as recent as the whole PM/YU/PMUA showdown. You can read it here. They reached Monggeu (the artist for Leviathan) for comment, and Monggeu noted "they asked me not to say anything too 'PC' when I was hired". Another staff member said PM treats workers 'not as people, but as parts'.

HamHamPangPang addresses a rumour that fan gifts are being thrown out, saying the stored items were damaged. Main response has been "with no notice though?" and "how the fuck did that happen?" with some gift-givers noting they have photo evidence of their goods being stored safely. Most people are actually rather forgiving of the manager (HHPP has been totally exempt from all the blowback towards PM's mismanagement thus far) and are casting suspicion on Kim Jihoon.

Most importantly of all, Kim Jihoon posts an apology on the Limbus Company twitter, which is a hell of a thing after the Notes App Ragepost. He far more cordially explains that he says he posted a notice with 'vague wordings', despite the fact that it very explicitly stated 'she violated our rules, and thus we won't be working with her in the future' - the only vague aspect was how Vellmori left the company. I suppose this is a polite way to say 'we fucked her over in hopes the DCInsiders would feel they successfully drew blood and leave the company alone'. At no point does he specify the original DCInside harassment beyond 'the artist was free to go after them legally', just as Hwanmin Kim mentioned.

Also this:

LMAO

It's actually an otherwise reasonable apology and I think it's encouraging that he will finally work with his employees when they come to him with harassment, but he at no point is clear on why on earth it required international protest for him to do so.

But he had time to interject that he wants the Geonggi Youth Union, Hwanmin Kim, and the PMUA annihalated. OK dude

Personally, I support further protest and not spending money on Project Moon titles, this time strictly over refusal to denounce anti-feminist harassment or comment on their mismanagement. Also it's all but explicit the offer PM gave was "either resign and escape by letting DCInside feel they won or stay on and sue them by yourself, we don't want to rock the boat by helping you" and I'm pissed

#project moon #it never ends.

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shuttershocky · 6 months

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I got mutuals who love FF16 and I did at least have enough fun to play through the entire game so I'm going to try to not be too harsh on it, but I disagree with the statement that its battle system is great. I would wait for the PC version to release and for someone to make an inevitable "Use all Eikons at once" mod, because otherwise the combat becomes very, very stale halfway through. It makes me wish that they just stuck to Final Fantasy style ARPG combat, because when they went for being an action game they refused to commit to it.

I was having fun with it until halfway through the game where its limitations became very apparent: it was branding itself as the first Final Fantasy to become a full action game, but didn't want to leave behind ARPG's entirely and so they limited the number of Eikons you can have equipped so there's still a measure of making a "build" (equipment is literally just stat go up so there's no build choice there lmao)

This is fucking disastrous because Clive's moveset outside of Eikon abilities never expands ever. He has the DMC foundation (as Square Enix famously hired DMC5's combat designer) of having attack-based parries (you have to clash an attack with the enemy's rather than time a block), enemy step, timed dodges, a ground slam, a taunt button, etc, but it's just the foundation, and it never fucking grows.

You have one, ONE attack string for the entire game: Attack, Magic Burst, Attack, Magic Burst, Attack, Magic Burst, Attack, Magic Burst, and this goes for both on the ground and in the air, meaning the longest attack combo you can make on an enemy you can send flying is A, M, A, M, A, M A, M, Torgal attack, Phoenix Shift (which is just Dante's Trick btw) A, M, A, M, Torgal uppercut+ Enemy Step (because you'll fall before you finish this), A, M, ground slam, maybe another Torgal attack.

That's it. For the entire game. You can charge an attack to give yourself super armor to make parries easier or charge a magic attack (not that you can shoot one off midcombo as you need to be tapping magic to do magic bursts), but otherwise you're not exactly going to be seeing infinite creative possibilities.

Meanwhile the Eikon abilities are limited by three issues: They have cooldowns, there's only two ability slots per EIkon (not counting their base ability / Feat) with a max of 3 eikons equipped, and the strong Eikon abilities are much, much, MUCH stronger than the fun Eikon abilities.

You know who are fun Eikons? Titan and Garuda. Titan has the most satisfying base ability in Titanic Block with incredibly meaty feeling counter hits, while Garuda's the only Eikon that realized FF16 wants to be an action game and has abilities that create actual combos like Gouge and Wicked Wheel rather than one and done spellcasts.

But do you know who you actually need to deal with the significantly bloated HP bars in lategame? Odin (base Odin because of Arm of Darkness' incredible damage and clear, but also Dancing Steel) and Shiva (Cold Snap + Diamond Dust). You've got one Eikon slot left to bring for a favorite (but let's be real it's prooobably Phoenix for Phoenix Shift) and two or one slots left for fun (because you WILL have Gigaflare, Lightning Rod, Diamond Dust, Judgment Bolt and/or Dancing Steel).

"But you never play efficient in DMC" yeah because playing for style over efficiency is built into the system. There's a style meter that hypes up how cool you are, strong enemies can get ragdolled around, and most importantly YOU HAVE SO MANY OPTIONS. Dante has more possible avenues of attack than the human mind can comprehend, Clive has his basic moveset, 6 Eikon abilities, and 3 Eikon Feats maximum, and you have to commit the 6 Eikon abilities to a cooldown in order to use them.

Let's say you customize to look stylish and cool, you go Titan - Garuda - Phoenix and then you start with a Raging Fists counter into Phoenix Shift, basic attack string, Wicked Wheel to take it to the air, air attack string, enemy step, Gouge, ground slam, finish with Windup. Congratulations, 4/6 of your equipped abilities are on cooldown to do that one cool-looking combo, you were attacking one enemy the whole time, and you didn't even deal as much damage as Lightning Rod + Level 5 Arm of Darkness clearing all the trash in the fight while dealing way more damage to the boss, and all that's on cooldown is Lightning Rod.

Do you know what lategame FF16 combat looks like? You rotate through a selection of one and done spells like you're farming a dungeon in Genshin Impact, optimizing your rotation by lining up the cooldowns of your 3 characters (Eikons in FF16's case) to do as much burst damage in a window as possible. As soon as a boss hits 40% Break bar or less, you cast Lightning Rod, then Diamond Dust (Diamond Dust's first half will both destroy 40% of an enemy's Break Bar while the second half does so many hits you hit the maximum bonus Break damage immediately with just combining with Lightning Rod), then Level 5 Arm of Darkness, Dancing Steel, Rift Slip to cancel the animation after the last hit (one of the few extremely cool unique abilities that aren't just big damage nuke), Level 5 Arm of Darkness again which was recharged by Dancing Steel, Gigaflare, and if the boss is really tanky? Judgment Bolt. Feeling Spicy and want even higher Break damage? Have Bahamut equipped and charge a level 5 Megaflare (dodge attacks while charging so it doesn't take forever to charge) and then unleash that BEFORE Lightning Rod + Diamond Dust.

That's how you make the most of a Break in FF16, because doing a regular honest combo on an enemy you've Broken won't do anything substantial due to the game being balanced around how ridiculously powerful the endgame nuke rotation is. As meaty and fun as Titanic Block is, when you see it do 2% of the enemy's max HP as damage even after how crunchy and satisfying the 3 counter hits are, you get discouraged because now you're weighing the opportunity cost of having Titan equipped vs Odin.

You're not supposed to worry about that in an action game! You play inefficiently because you're toying with the enemy on purpose, and then you annihilate them with your ultra nuking moves as you please. You don't choose what moves you bring to a fight! You have ALL of them! The promise of unlimited creativity, fulfilling mastery, and the game hyping you up as the coollest motherfucker on earth implores you to play with your entire moveset, invites you to experiment. What you optimize is how flashy you can look, not how much damage you can inflict because you made moves a semi-limited resource in a character action game for some reason.

"Well putting a cooldown on moves and limiting how many you have is 16 just trying to preserve the RPG identity of Final Fantasy" Where??? 16 abandoned damn near everything! Jill gave her country, her powers, her body, and all her screentime to Clive and Clive can't even give her a potion?! You don't have job classes, your party exists to be sandbags for you, you can't interact with each other in battle, your only resources are potions to heal and stat buffs for just you, your equipment means nothing and you can't even so much as banter with your party members while traveling around because god forbid you start to look friendly with each other.

Nobody praised FF15's combat but the game threw everything and the kitchen sink at you to make you believe Noctis and his boys were a team, just like how a Final Fantasy party should be. You passed resources between each other, you leveled up together, even when you only controlled Noctis you could give orders to Ignis, Gladio, and Prompto, then the Royal Edition was like "hey wait a minute this is a Final Fantasy game" and let you freely swap control between Noctis and the boys in the middle of combat. It wasn't tight and precise but it worked at making you feel like a party, and Final Fantasy as a series IS about being in a party.

FF16's combat system removed all of that, slapped a Final Fantasy skin on top of a Devil May Cry foundation, and then forgot to be a Devil May Cry game anyway. Are you going to do a cool co-op move with Jill like in FF15? No. Are you even going to talk to each other mid combat as your relationship grows? No. She shuts the fuck up and throws attacks separately from you and won't talk to distract you from being a one-man army.

Are you at least going to be able to juggle a bandit in the air for 40 seconds with an array of moves that will have your hands shaking as the game starts hyping you up? Still no, that's not how we do things here in Final Fantasy. You throw someone up in the air and they're dropping after 10 seconds. We don't do that extended combo stuff here.

Lightning Rod. Will o Wisp. Gigaflare. Fuck you.

#it's funny because God of War 4 ditched just as much about old God of War as FF16 did with Final Fantasy and yet i like one but not the othe #Poor Jill got screwed over for a combat system that wouldn't even commit

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raayllum · 1 year

Text

The Queen’s Mercy Breakdown Analysis / Predictions

Bloodline that Binds card from out-of-context S5 spoilers is definitely about Karim and Janai being the two heirs that can presumably free Kim’Dael from her chain(s). I think that Karim will barter / hire Kim’Dael to assassinate his sister (or, if she cannot harm descendants of Aditi at all, Amaya) under the deal of freeing her afterwards. Therefore, I have a feeling that this screencap

is Amaya, Callum, and most importantly, Rayla, encountering Kim’Dael in her initial attack

(Also, given that we’ve had a short story entitled “The Queen’s Soul” for Khessa and “The Queen’s Mercy” for Aditi, it seems likely Janai will get a tale named after her at one point as well, as she’s currently the only Sunfire queen without.)

This also brings our “characters in S5 who are seeking Freedom” tally up to like, five, now that it’s Callum (from Aaravos), Rayla (for Callum & the coins), Viren (from Aaravos’ machinations, most likely), Aaravos (from prison), and finally Kim’Dael from Aditi’s golden blood oath chain. How’s that for layering

Specifically Kim’Dael and Aaravos both being imprisoned with, well, very different kinds of keys tethered to each of them

The sharp circlet of gold had sealed itself around her neck without an edge, without a latch, without a lock.

(Flashbacks to Amaya’s “I don’t believe in locks” lmao).

We also see the return of deceptive gift giving and promises under the guise of protection or unclear terms. Aaravos was a betrayer who was then betrayed; Rayla was a liar who then revealed one (Claudia); Kim’Dael is a deceiver who’s then deceived, etc etc.

Also in addition to the storm symbolism / pattern the marketing and S5 has been pushing, the Heart Motif (specifically a heart as vulnerability or truth) continues to be more and more consistent, featuring now in every short story’s release and making me believe more and more in my “the Key of Aaravos is Aaravos’ heart/chest piece” theory

Fools. They might as well have held their own hearts, beating and bloody, in the palms of their hands. Kim’dael knew that if she showed them her heart—or something convincingly like it—the Sunfire elves would do exactly what she wanted them to do.

Zubeia flew through its torrents until her wings ached, but she could not find the tempest’s edge nor the quiet heart at its center. [...] The hurt in her chest deepened. “But I am so tired. I’ve walked so far alone.” “You are stronger than this. All storms end!” Rex rumbled a snort through flared nostrils. “What lies at its heart?”

Lissa had left her years ago, but the space she had owned in Claudia’s heart remained. It was a dark place now, hard and hateful, its edges raw as a wound that had forgotten to heal.

While one may say it ends with a sunrise, another will insist it ends at nightfall. Yet at the heart of the story is a single, simple truth…A star fell from the sky.

I remember how I felt when my parents left me to join the Dragonguard, like PART OF MY HEART WAS MISSING and I would never feel right again. [...] But, if it does—if you feel that soft aching—know that that piece of your heart isn’t missing. It’s not missing at all, Callum: I’m carrying it with me!

Also more Kim’Dael parallels to Rayla and Aaravos not only in aforementioned heart symbolism (“My heart for Xadia”) but also in being likewise the last of their kind(s) / specific groups, and exiled/hunted for it as well. There’s also the way Rayla’s mercy doomed her team and “ Mercy would be the queen’s death someday, she thought—but that, of course, was none of her concern” even if it of course doesn’t come to fruition quite the way she expects

We have Harrow’s “we will pay the blood price eventually” coming true quite literally, as well as questions of why Aditi chose to keep Kim’Dael as a personal murder pet over just killing her (which she clearly could’ve done) when Aditi’s chain clearly isn’t enough to stop Kim’Dael from committing crimes in the future, either.

Last but not least we have Callum and Kim’Dael parallels in terms of literal (or metaphorical) chains around the neck, an inability to breathe, being brought to their knees, etc.

#predictions #tdp spoilers #tdp #the dragon prince #kim'dael #tdp shorts #s5 #s5 speculation #theme: freedom #heart motif #mini meta #analysis series #not really but it's the closest i got

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thisispoggers · 9 months

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What do you imagine a Geronimo Stilton Pirate AU to be like?

Soda you are about to awaken the AC Black Flag Whore inside me

The ship’s name would likely be The Rodent’s Voyage lol a little something from its original source

In true fashion, Geronimo is the unwilling captain of a ship lmaoooo but id say that Geronimo is gonna be hella different than usual since he is gonna be raised as a pirate

Pirates in history is known for catching navy ships and looting them so G would be a lot more aggressive compared to his other counterparts which is a saying something lmao

G would have to be really ruthless, strategic and has great fighting skills just to be able to lead a gang of pirates but that doesn’t mean that G has to be like hella rude (tho he has to be hella loud lol)

Which can be in their favour cuz if he can speak the gentleman’s language then he will be able to gain a whole lot of allies despite being a criminal of the sea

But while he is bound by contract on land, that doesn’t mean he is bound by contract at sea because it can be a lot easier to hide crimes at sea cuz many people in the old days are unable to swim (unless you’re a pirate or work on the water)

While Geronimo might be a pirate, he always is true to his promise because for him “a true man keeps his words” which is hella rare for pirates at the time so his crew would definitely be hired for a whole lot of dirty work by corrupted officials that doesn’t care how the work is done as long as it is on the down low and done quickly so he definitely has a lot of favours he can ask to be able to get out of certain situations

Of course G would not be trusting any of his allies with his life nor any of his family’s life so he always carries a weapon on him in case they try anything cuz he might be the only pirate captain working for anyone with money, he is still a pirate so if he gets caught or arrested, he will be shot on the spot

Anyways to the family!

Peepaw would definitely be retired but as he was the previous captain, he would definitely be the boatswain of the ship, essentially he is the manager of everything on the ship so he is always checking in on the ship’s condition, supplies, crew and most importantly Geronimo (the other option for him is that he retires somewhere nice and secluded but that’s boring I need Peepaw screaming at the crew)

Thea is gonna be the Helmsman of the ship as well as being the Sailing Master as she is great with navigation as well as finding new places to check out and loot from plus she is the best fighter of the entire crew, she essentially drives the ship as well as set the crew in the course that she agrees upon with Captain Geronimo

Trap is the cook no explanations needed screw this guy

Fine he is also the Master Gunner, he just maintains the ship’s weapons

Benjamin is most definitely and irrevocably gonna be somewhere else that is not the ship cuz as much as the family would like to be close to the little man, they ultimately will not want him anywhere in harm’s way so they got someone else raising him in a far away but safe location away from the pirate’s enemies cuz they will not take any chances that he would get hurt or worse

I think most of the family’s riches are concealed away from the rest of the world in the safest location and that location would be some type of mansion or villa they built in an extremely secluded but safe location known only by Peepaw, Thea and Geronimo in which there is a secret room where the money is in gold and precious items like gold swords, crowns and the likes (Trap is not to be trusted screw him)

This is also gonna be the place Benjamin will be living in and raised to not be a pirate by Aunt Sweetfur and eventually Professor Von Volt

Prof Volt probs got trusted because he is indebted to Peepaw or something like he grew up poor and he got what it takes for a medical degree and Peepaw pays for it or something and that’s why he is loyal idk

Which can also open up to some kind of storyline that Benjamin is now a grown young man and wants to learn about his family’s history only to figure out that his estranged family members were a bunch of pirates which can be a cool story or something

#went a bit too long on this one lmao but the notion is pretty fun #Rich little boy discovers his family were a bunch of criminals more at 10 #geronimo stilton #trap stilton #thea stilton #William Shortpaws #benjamin stilton #Professor Von Volt #pog writes #<- for long posts lmao

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fuck-customers · 1 year

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https://fuck-customers.tumblr.com/post/700332407235264512

This shit INFURIATES me!

LONG POST/RANT BELOW

So the pictures in the linked post are from a month and a half ago and I just went into work yesterday (12/15) and it fucking looks like that again!!

But there's multiple levels to this. It's infuriating enough that my workplace is a gigantic mess, but what was specifically pissing me off (obviously) was that no one was doing their job.

WELL. I get about 4-12 hours a week, I only get 1 or 2 fabric department shifts per month. (probably because it's my favorite department and my boss is a bitch) HOWEVER I checked the schedule and realized that my boss secretly made one of my coworkers full-time (she has 35-40 hours on every schedule for over 2 months) when 1. I'VE BEEN THERE AN ENTIRE YEAR LONGER THAN HER A N D TWO YEARS LONGER THAN THE SM HERSELF!! And 2. More importantly, SHE AIN'T DOING HER JOB!!

Top left is what I walked into when I clocked into work. I had almost nonstop customers (it's the week before Christmas) but I made it a priority to at least make a dent in that pile. So I rolled and labelled (and documented, as seen above) all 25 of these remnants during my 1 piddly 4 hour shift. I also had to look up most of the fabrics manually on the store website.

I got all this done in 4 hours while also being interrupted every 2-5 minutes by dumbass customers on top of doing my regular duties: the fabric go-backs, answering the phone, answering in-store customer questions, helping in-store customers locate items and unlocking products (sewing machines + scissors) for customers. There's no reason why my coworker can't get that pile done in 40 hour weeks for 2 months. She's ONLY scheduled for the fabric department. Never for register or anything else. (I get scheduled for other departments, and only get a fabric shift once or twice a month...for 4 hours)

But now I have a few questions for everyone. I want to bring all of this up to my boss and show her these pictures and basically say <1> "I've done ALL of this work as well as go-backs in just two 4 hour shifts. I made sure that I didn't leave any work for the next person who comes in. It's unacceptable that the fabric was left that way in the first place. I've been here nearly 3 years. Longer than EVERYONE in this store, including YOU, SM. So WHY THE ACTUAL FUCK am I getting single digit hours during CHRISTMAS?" Obviously, I won't say it in those words, but that's the general point I want to make. I also want to say this without throwing the full-time coworker under the bus. <2> I also want to remind my SM that I have a hearing disability that I was hired with and I know the previous SM was aware of it and should have told her. And I know that I personally told her. (the new SM) Did she forget? Is she retaliating against me because she thinks I'm ignoring her when I don't respond because I didn't hear her due to my disability? I know I can't say that like that, so how should I word it without basically saying "what the fuck, bitch??" Lmao

Thank you for reading my long ass rant.

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sugurushimura · 5 months

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I'm not sure if this has been asked before but how do you think Misa and Higuchi's relationship would function if they actually did get married?

LMAO, i think the simple answer is that it wouldn't function at all.

it's kind of hard for me to conceptualize them getting married at all, tbh. misa clearly finds higuchi revolting and unpleasant on pretty much every level, and i doubt she would've gone into the whole "i want to marry kira" thing with him if it could possibly have led to an actual engagement.

what misa's after is the ideal knight in shining armor archetype, and while higuchi tries really hard to act chivalrous, he's ultimately a poor actor, and misa immediately clocks him as a creep. he's also not her type physically. the only real reason for her to marry him would be for his money, which is pretty out of line with how misa acts. BUT. it's an infinite universe, and i'm sure there are plenty of scenarios out there that could lend themselves to a higuchi-misa marriage AU. personally i have no thoughts on how.

but yeah, the relationship itself kind of... wouldn't function. higuchi thinks misa is hot, and he doesn't have any issues with her personality, but he also has no real interest in her besides her looks (and, if we're looking at canon, the possibility that she's the second kira). he would treat her nicely but with no real interest outside of sex and, most importantly, having a pretty model to show off at company parties.

i would say he'd want her to play housewife (cleaning, cooking, and all that), but he has enough money to hire a maid, so that probably isn't an issue. ultimately all he really wants is a status symbol. what misa does all day doesn't really matter to him.

misa, on the other hand, would never be happy with higuchi as a husband. she doesn't like him or find him attractive, and she knows he doesn't really care about her. the sex isn't awful but i don't think they'd be super compatible partners. the only pro for her is his money, and like i said, i just don't think misa cares about that much.

frankly, i think she'd be miserable, and inevitably she'd verbally lash out at higuchi over it. for a while i think higuchi would just be like "yeah yeah sweetie whatever you say" but eventually it would start to grate on him so they'd be at each other's throats all the time... they're both petty, toxic people, so it would probably be messy. it would either end in divorce or in misa killing higuchi. unless, of course, this is an AU where higuchi is kira, in which case he'd probably kill misa way before that because he's higuchi and he LOVES MURDER (with the death note).

as unlikely as it is, i could see it making for a fun AU and i'd totally read fic of it. thanks for the ask!

#asks #Kyosuke Higuchi #Misa Amane #anonymous

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keplercryptids · 2 years

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I REALLY HOPE YOU DON'T SEE THIS AS RUDE BUT I READ SOME OF YOUR TAGS AND I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS!

You got married in a hot air balloon??? First of all very cool, but also you mentioned that you got really bad motion sickness. Was there no test drive? Or was it like a really windy day?

Also most importantly did you know the van of burly men that followed you around? Or were they hired specifically for this job? Because I can't get over the idea of being invited to be a part of the wedding party and being told that your specific job is that you have to drive around in a van and maybe tackle the wicker basket. But I also love the image of burly men following you around on your wedding day having never met you before!!

I just love this concept and I hope you had a lovely wedding day despite the motion sickness!

yes okay so! you can pay for bigger baskets that hold 8-10 people, but i didn't want wedding guests lol so it was just me, my partner, our friend who was officiating, and the captain in the actual basket. the captain had a crew of three or four other guys who were on van duty.

not only is there no test drive when you take a hot air balloon flight, but to test the winds, the captain and his buds blow up a balloon (like, a regular-ass party balloon) with helium, let it go, and watch it for a while until it disappears. that's how they know which way the hot air balloon will go, and they approximate where it'll end up based on that. they have a bunch of landing spots predetermined but you kind of just go whatever way the wind wants to push you.

we met up with the crew in an empty lot in a big ol' subdivision, they tested the winds, and then the rest of the crew got into aforementioned van, along with my photographer (lmao bless her). and we got in the balloon and took off.

the actual flight is very, very smooth. but i got motion sick because i am me, i get motion sick on escalators lmao. i had not planned for this and probably should have, you know, stared at the horizon the whole time, but the thing about chartering a hot air balloon flight is you're flying right over people's houses. a dog was chasing us!!! people were waving from the street. it was very interesting down there and so within 25 minutes i was curled up on the bottom of the basket, trying my best not to throw up into someone's backyard.

the captain ordered an emergency landing, which meant the crew had to RACE to the nearest empty field. which was normal for them, but pretty scary for my photographer lmao. literally, as soon as the captain saw a random field that was big enough, he started the descent. the van caught up and three burly men sprinted across the field to grab the basket before it lifted back up. because hot air balloons will just DO that until you've deflated them. also, the crew needed to tip the basket over so we could get out, lol.

as a note. i don't think it's legal for them to land in any field they want, so as we were hitting the ground, the captain said, "if the cops show up, we tell them this was an emergency medical landing, got it?" he was very cool.

anyway, i instantly felt better as soon as we landed, and it led to some very beautiful sunset photos. the random field really pulled through for us.

[image description: a photo of a hot air balloon, fully inflated, resting in an open field, the sun setting behind it. End ID.]

here are some of the burly crew mentioned. they popped champagne for us in the random field and a great time was had by all.

[image description: a photo of me, my friend, my partner, and three members of the hot balloon crew standing in a field. Everybody is smiling, and most are holding small plastic cups of champagne. end ID.]

so yes, i did meet all these men on my wedding day, but they were great and it was very fun. the captain was one of the chillest dudes ever, which i think you'd have to be if you're a professional hot air balloon captain. highly recommend eloping in a hot air balloon if you can.

#jd.txt #x me a q #spouse tag

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mermaidsirennikita · 2 years

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Among the insanity of people defending them, I guess just on principal because it's a big corporation vs the little guy! Which...people need to learn to pick their battles. The take that Netflix should have hired them and do the musical is truly the dumbest. Why? Why would they do that!?

The musical, while popular, did not contribute to the overall popularity of Bridgerton and if anything, it becoming so popular is just a mark of how big a phenomenon it was and still is.

But most importantly Netflix doing the musical would have done nothing for them in the long run except piss of Shonda. It would literally just be S1 but with songs? What they would have used scenes and dialogue from the show to fill the rest of the time? Hired new actors to performe characters that already have actors playing them on the show? And it's not even like a complete story? It's only S1. So what they would have keeped doing more musicals for each season? So Netflix would basically be paying for 2 adaptations of the same material but with different creative teams??? Again do you see how stupid it sounds.

It would have been derivative to the show, possibly hurt the Bridgerton brand that Netflix is trying to cultivate and not worth the cost or effort on their part.

I imagine it got some people to get hype about the show and the fact that the got a Grammy off of it was good press--but good press in that it sort of verified the cultural phenomenon of the show. "Look, Bridgerton is so popular that these TikTokers got a Grammy off its back!" That's not a credit to the musical, but a credit to the show. Additionally, I think this lawsuit has opened the door for a lot of theater folks to get real about how they actually felt about a TikTok musical album for a show that was never performed in full stroke live at that point won over musical albums for shows that were or could have been.

And the thing is that in a sense Netflix was offering to "hire" them, or at least establish a business connection, through that licensing deal. I really hate the discourse surrounding this deal, which none of us have seen. "Maybe they wanted too much of the profit" lmao too fucking bad? They own it. They can demand that. Bear and Barlow would have nothing if not for the original show.

If Bear and Barlow had played ball with Netflix, who the fuck knows? Maybe a production deal for the musical to be filmed and then streamed on Netflix would have happened. Probably not, but like... It super doesn't matter if your fanwork is popular lmao, the copyright holder is under no obligation to play ball with you.

Lol the discourse around this also reminds me of how little respect that fandom at large has for romance novelists because it's like... Julia Quinn is the reason why any of this exists and she hasn't seen a dime from B&B.... She is also an independent creator.... She is also a woman.... She actually had the ideas that made any of this possible lmao.

#bridgerton

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anya-grace · 3 years

Text

Two beautiful people sent me an ask about my rivetra actors au, and boyyyy let me tell you, it was so fun making them again 😍 thank you to the pretty souls who asked this! 💘

The first actors au were from season 1 and 2, this one will focus on the filming of season 3 until the last season :) here you go!

more rivetra actors!au headcanon (some are nsfw-ish)

- Let me get straight to the point: lots of sex. Car sex. On-set sex. Dressing room sex. Name it.

- Both of them are aware that it was unprofessional, but there was a time when they did not see each other for more than a month because of their (especially Levi’s) busy and conflicting schedule, so when Petra surprised him on set, the frustration and longing just piled up and they had sex.

- Then it became a habit.

- And this habit, of course, didn’t go unnoticed by the other casts and even crews of the show. Armin heard them once, and the poor boy made a mental note to never ever come close to Levi’s room again.

- The older casts are fine with it since, you know, normal adult stuff. But for the love of the three Walls, can you lovebirds tone the moaning down? People are trying to get some sleep wtf.

- Levi’s make-up artist had to deal with the pain of covering his hickeys (courtesy of Ms. Petra Ral) every shoot. The ones on his neck, especially those near his adam’s apple were the most visible. And since Captain Levi rarely wore a cravat in season three, part one, it made the work harder for the make-up artist.

- As compensation, Petra always bought a special souvenir for Levi’s make-up artist whenever she flies overseas for her theater shows.

- For the premiere of season 3, Levi took Petra as his date on the red carpet. It was the first event they attended publicly as a couple.

- It was a big milestone for their relationship because they are both public figures. And we all know what happens when celebrities publicize their relationships, it is prone to issues and controversies.

- And you can very well guess that Levi Ackerman showing off his beautiful girlfriend to the press was big news. As big as the AoT premiere even.

- During the air of season three, Levi became more famous and he attracted many overseas fans as well as international actresses because of his brilliant scenes with Kenny.

- Although Petra is not the jealous type, she admitted that somehow it affected her when other international actresses expressed their admiration towards Levi. Some even said that Levi is their type and they are looking forward to working with him in the future.

- When Levi sensed this, he immediately headed to his IG and posted a picture of Petra with a very cheesy caption lmao. Forgive him, he's new to this kind of relationship.

- Did I mention he also posted a picture of them kissing in front of the Eiffel tower?

- Only a few know this, but the real Levi is one clingy boyfriend.

- He is very touchy when it comes to Petra. He just really loves holding her. Sometimes he just randomly hugs her, caresses her, nuzzles her. He just loves having skin-to-skin contact with her.

- His love language is actions and gestures.

- His favorite gesture to do to Petra is a back hug with his arms under her boobs. It was a soft gesture and it wasn't sexual in any way...until it did.

- More than half of their sex started with Levi touching Petra’s underboobs tbh.

- Sometimes Levi thinks that he's neglecting Petra and more than once he considered quitting the show business for her. But then he’ll see her smiling at him, and she tells him that she's very proud of what he’s doing and that she's happy that she gets to support him with doing the things he is really passionate about and just… all he could think of that time is that he wants to marry this amazing woman.

- He is also supportive of Petra’s theater actress career, of course. And he hates the fact that he needs to hide whenever he watches one of her shows since people eventually gather around him asking for an autograph and he feels that it’s rude for Petra. This is her moment and he doesn’t want to ruin it for her.

- Hence, his all-black and mysterious get-up whenever he watches her show.

- AoT season three was a huge success and plans for season four are already on the move. Casts were given a long break before the shooting began again and both Petra and Levi took this as a chance to bond together.

-Petra's favorite thing to do with Levi is playing with animals. She has a soft spot for animals, and she wanted for them to adopt a pet but she knew that the poor animal will only be given less attention because both of them are always busy.

-When Petra's theater world tour ended, she and Levi started living together. They didn't have the chance to do it before since they were both busy.

-Them living together is probably the height of their relationship. They fought, they had sex, they laughed, they played, they bathe together. They did everything together and it was a beautiful experience.

- For their third anniversary, Levi booked a vacation on a private island for a week. It was also their last bonding because Levi is going to start filming again for season four in less than a month.

- They did not communicate with anyone during that one week. It was just them, and they made the most of it.

- Mornings were spent for morning sex and breakfast in bed. Afternoons were for swimming, sleeping, cuddling, hugging, kissing, and every activity they could think of doing. They explored the island, they petted stray animals, they dived into the ocean, they build sandcastles, they ate different dishes, they had sex in caves and while swimming on the beach, they climbed trees, they bought souvenirs, and most importantly, they took many pictures together.

- Evenings were the most romantic of all. They had sex in the darkness of their own room while they hear the ocean waves crashed to the shore outside and as the sea breeze cooled their sweat-slicked skin. They took the time to explore each other’s body like it’s their last (because it will be in a matter of days).

- On their last night, Pet cried while they’re having sex. Levi’s face was buried on the crook of her neck and she was moaning one moment, and then the next she’s sobbing like a poor little baby.

- She said that she’d gotten used to life with Levi always by her side and she didn’t want it to ever change. Levi comforted her. He petted her hair, and he said that it’s going to be okay. He kissed her head, then her hair, her face, and her body. Then they had the most emotional and meaningful sex of their entire life.

- Levi started shooting again for season four. Petra, like the past seasons, visits him as much as she can. It was hard adjusting to this type of life again, but she’s a strong woman. And besides, she’s going to start rehearsing for another theater show again.

- They need to undergo medical check-ups before the casting and she found out then that she is pregnant with Levi’s baby.

- It freaked her out. She and Levi never talked about babies before since they’re busy with their careers, and their relationship has always been just the two of them.

- Levi was out of town for the shoot, and she didn’t want to tell him the good news on the phone so she patiently waited until he got home.

- He was greeted with a fancy dinner, and a “Welcome home, Daddy” by Petra. Levi thought that it was her being cheeky and naughty at first, but when dinner ended and she ran for her life to the sink, that’s when he started getting worried. And when Petra showed him the positive result in her medical check-up, well, let’s just say that on that day, Levi Ackerman received a good reminder of what he did to her on their vacation months ago.

- But seriously, he was seconds away from calling his manager and dropping his AoT contract just so he can take care of Petra and their baby. Petra said that it was fine, and she doesn’t want him to quit.

- Levi apologized to Petra many times because he wasn’t there when she discovered it, but she assured him that it was alright and it wasn’t his fault. God, he’s with the perfect woman.

- Since Levi is a big shot in the industry, he demanded control over his schedules. Honestly, he wanted to be at her side 24/7. He wanted to see her belly swell as months went by. He wanted to be the one to satisfy her midnight pregnancy cravings. He wanted to kiss her face and her belly first thing in the morning.

- He convinced Petra to move temporarily to the Ackerman family house where Levi’s parents are staying. Kenny and Mikasa also lived in the same affluent neighborhood. He had doctors, and helpers, and bodyguards hired for Petra. But she said that she’s too uncomfortable with many people around her.

- Petra and Levi’s mom build a bond of their own. She’d gotten to know more of Levi through his mother’s perspective. The older woman showed her Levi’s teenage room, his past awards, his photos, his audition tapes that weren’t out for the public, and she fell in love with him more.

- They had a super private wedding with their relatives and closest friends. Petra was six months pregnant by that time and season four is planned to air three months from now.

- So, you know about that one holy Rivetra panel where Petra is looking back to Levi? The reason why the scene was not in the actual show was that she is pregnant. That’s why the directors are forced to use old scenes from season one instead.

- Despite all the efforts of being private, paparazzi and the media still caught wind of the secret wedding, and rumors about Petra being pregnant started circulating over the internet. Levi shut down these rumors every time someone attempted to question him in his interviews.

- When the shooting ended, Petra was already eight months into pregnancy. As per tradition, the cast and staff held an after-party, but Petra was surprised when it became a baby shower for her instead.

- The baby was supposedly due in the third week of December, but Petra’s water broke around the first week instead and she started her labor. She ended up having the same birthday as their healthy baby boy.

- The baby was named River Ackerman. He was named after Levi’s role where he won the Best Actor Award when he was seventeen. It was also a tribute to Levi’s role in AoT since his name was sometimes spelled as ‘Rivaille’ on many occasions.

#this was so long oh boy #i love this au so much tooooo #y'all can send me more ask about this au if u want :)#rivetra #levi x petra #rivapeto #rivetra headcanon #rivetra actors au

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domesticmail · 4 years

Text

scrapes

pairing: jj maybank x reader

word count: fuck if i know lmao

requested: nope!

summary: idk how i’d explain this one. reader is frustrated that the pogues keep treating her like a baby, so she takes things into her own hands, and when she gets hurt, things come to a head in the kitchen of The Chateau

warnings: ANGST. cursing, blood, and ANGST BABY ANGST

a/n: starts quick, gets sad/angry, ends content and kinda happy! also for reference the Pogues are all 17 and the reader is 16 here!! might make this a multiple part fic, who knows !!

Your feet hit the ground, rubber soles slamming against pavement. Broken pieces of road and rubble crunch under your feet. The sound of pebbles cracking under your weight is lost in the commotion of noises, your heart throwing itself against your ribcage, the friction of your hand sliding against a wall, cold air blowing in and out of your lungs.

Splinters embed in your skin as you scramble up the fence, wood cutting into the meat of your thigh. As your body hits the dirt, you swear you can feel the wound opening, blood painting the ground. A ringing fills your ears, but there’s not room in your schedule today to worry about that - you’re on a bit of a time constraint here, if you hadn’t noticed. With that in your mind, the panic of falling behind floods your veins, and you’re up again, sneakers throwing dirt and rocks in your wake as you high-tail it away from your bad decision.

Shouts come from behind you, telling you to stop, but clearly they haven’t gotten the message: you’re not sticking around. You round the corner and haul ass down a few twists and turns before finding your final destination, a friend’s house. You burst through the front entrance and slam it shut, leaning back against the front door, chest heaving.

John B. raises an eyebrow at you. “Woah. Hey, Y/N.”

You don’t respond - you’re busy doing that mental-checklist thing you always do.

Shoes? Ratty old converse, several years old, scuffed on the sides - but they were like that before. Check.

Cut on your leg? Not too big, hurts like a bitch, though. Can be fixed with a towel, rubbing alcohol, and some pressure. Check.

Any other cuts? Some splinters in your palms, yes, but nothing else major. Thank fuck.

A pat of your back pocket reveals that your wallet is still there, secure. Your earrings - still there. Phew. Necklace didn’t break or fall off when you hopped the fence? It’s still dangling around your neck, holy shit. Check.

Aside from the cut and some flecks of dirt dug into the arm you landed on, you’re in remarkably good shape for someone running from hired security.

You shoot a grin at John B., who’s now been joined in his confusion by the rest of the group: Kie and Sarah looking worried, Pope looking exasperated and mildly concerned, and JJ looking very, very confused. Walking past them to the kitchen, you start rooting around for supplies to clean up your leg. Nobody’s said anything yet, and you know why. It’s not common for you to come home like this, out of breath, roughed up a little, bleeding. You can feel them holding their tongues, waiting for you to explain.

The silence stretches into uncomfortable territory. You’re too busy trying to fix your cut to care, really. You know what comes next, anyway - you’ve seen them do it to JJ about a thousand times. The quiet, palpable tension of concern, and then the inevitable eruption.

Just as you expect, as soon as you hop up on the counter and begin your at-home wound treatment, showing no signs of speaking first, everyone explodes at once.

John B. “So no explanation? You’re just gonna walk in here like this is normal?”

Kie. “What the hell, Y/N? We didn’t know where you were! You could’ve died!”

Pope. “That’s a huge cut, what is wrong with you? What were you doing that was so stupid you got a cut like that?”

Sarah. “We were so worried! You weren’t picking up! Are you okay?”

And, of course, JJ. “Who did this to you?”

You’re applying pressure to your leg (fuck, fuck, ow, fuck, shit, bitch, motherfucker no thank you, ow), listening to your friends voice their concerns, when something hits you - JJ thinks someone hurt you?

More importantly, why is JJ so angry about it?

You’d been expecting him to be the least concerned, to give you a high five or a compliment or at least a proud grin, but no, you’re facing anger, frustration, radiating off of him. This is unprecedented - you never thought you guys were close like that.

Don’t get it wrong, you’re close with all the Pogues, just as family as the rest of them - JJ just isn’t really your person. You tend to be glued to Sarah and Kie at the hips, tagging along with them when it’s not a whole-group outing, so their worry makes sense. (You usually tell them everything, like sisters, but a two-day long excursion to do some very reckless shit hadn’t felt like something you should tell them. They’d just try to convince you not to go, and you were having none of that, two mornings ago.) But JJ? If anything, you were each other’s least favorite Pogues. The youngest and maybe the most reckless of the group (excluding Pope), you’re typically the one who reminds JJ of all the stuff that can go wrong with his ideas and schemes. You would think he’d be glad to see you get into a bit of trouble.

But there he is, jaw clenched, those eyes fixed directly on yours. His neck’s gone all tight (you’ve been around him long enough to know that only happens when he’s angry; it’s a little endearing, actually, a little cute), the hand not placed protectively on your knee clenching into a fist laid on the counter. And there’s something in that touch, the way he’s got his hand on your knee - there’s affection there, emotion, something you’ve never felt from JJ before.

All of a sudden, it’s like the greatest hyperfixation in the world is JJ’s hands. They’re not soft, necessarily, not the type of hand you want to hold just because it feels like it’s gentle and kind. Maybe that’s why you’re so drawn to this weird, unexpected touch. You can feel the callouses on his palm pressing into the pink, scraped (oh, you missed a spot in your checklist, your knees look wrecked from that fall over the fence; probably shouldn’t do that again) flesh of your knee, the pads of his fingertips pulling your attention away from the group and to him.

To put it lightly: it’s a very intimate three seconds.

You want to disappear for a second, want to vanish in a puff of smoke and not exist, because the intensity with which he’s looking at you is scary. Not like you’ve done something wrong, but like whoever he thinks did this to you is going to pay, and pay a hefty fee at that.

You don’t like it. Not at all. You would do anything - anything - for him to never look at you like that. Like he’s going to kill someone.

“What - Nobody did this to me, JJ,” you scoff, matching his intense gaze with an annoyed look. “If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine.”

He doesn’t look convinced. “You’re covering up for them. What did they say they’d do to you? I’ll do worse to them, Y/N, I swear, just tell me who did it.”

You scowl at him, scooting over to move your knee from his hand. This isn’t about you and JJ - this is about you wanting to prove yourself. This is about you showing them you’re not a baby. That you can handle yourself. Not that you need JJ to get all weird and protective over you. “I did this, JJ, back off. I don’t need you to be weird about it.”

The rest of the group has been quiet, but John B. pipes up. “He’s not being weird about anything. We were all worried.”

“I don’t need you guys to be worried about me. I’m fine.”

“You’re not fucking fine, you have a fucking cut on your leg - “

“I’m fine, JJ - “

“If you were okay you wouldn’t be fucking bleeding, Y/N - “

“Will you stop acting like I’m a child for two seconds? Nobody did this, it wasn’t Topper or Rafe or - “

It’s like a lightbulb goes on in JJ’s head. “It was Rafe, wasn’t it? I’ll fucking kill him, he has no right to put his hands on you - “

“JJ, shut the fuck up!”

He looks at you in stunned silence, leaning back a little as though your words had physically struck him.

You’re fuming now, blood running hot. This is exactly why you didn’t tell them your plan - they’d start with this shit. The constant babying. You understand, they’re seventeen, you’re sixteen, you’re younger and they want to protect you, but jesus christ, it’s not like they had some worldly experience - they’re seventeen years old, for fuck’s sake. “Don’t use my actions as a reason for you to go beat up Rafe, JJ. I’m not a fucking excuse for you to get in a fight. I did this for a reason, so how about you leave me alone and let me get to it instead of acting like I’m a fucking child?”

Everyone is silent.

The group looks actually stunned, like they’ve all been sucker-punched. Where the hell did this come from? You’ve never yelled like that. You’ve never yelled, period. You’re never the angry one - you’re the quiet one, the one who would rather be helping at The Wreck or on the HMS Pogue than be at the Boneyard at a kegger.

JJ, after the initial shock, looks even angrier now. He pulls away from you and storms off, running a hand through his blond hair. The sound of his shoes on the hardwood floor echoes through The Chateau, and you sit on the counter quietly, tears filling your eyes.

Not tears of sadness, though. You’re not sad.

You’re fucking angry. At all of them. For bringing you here. For pushing you to this point. For making you feel like a child.

“You treat me like a kid,” you say quietly, but with force, scowling at your tears.

Sarah’s the first to approach, wrapping her arms around you softly. You want to push her away, to refuse the affection, but you don’t. You just accept the distance, reluctantly hugging her, resting your head on her shoulder and just breathing, breathing, breathing. Maybe the tears’ll go away if you just breathe.

Pope is the next, not Kie. (She’s still surprised that you yelled. The indignation of being yelled at is fading, her initial annoyance becoming gentle concern.) He envelops you and Sarah.

Kie joins next, and then John B., and it’s when you feel his hand on your back that your breathing, breathing, breathing, becomes choked sob after choked sob, cries wracking your body into Sarah’s shoulder. You feel like you’re breaking down into them all, like the anger is pouring out of you like a waterfall, just gushing and gushing and gushing. It’s so frustrating, so difficult, so annoying, you just can’t deal with it anymore.

You don’t know how long you’ve been crying when your sobs recede their way to gentle hiccups. Your face is dry from the tears, and when everyone pulls away, you see tears in Sarah’s eyes. She offers you a weak smile, one you return.

There’s a conversation then, right there in the kitchen. It’s not one full of anger, or sadness, or anything especially negative. It’s just tired. The words float out of your mouth - “I’m sorry” - and it’s like you’re disconnected from yourself. It lasts maybe twenty minutes, apologizing from all ends, promises to do better, and at the end, you feel so full of love that you’re nearly bursting at the seams. We’re family, we love each other, you could’ve just told us if we were being frustrating, reassurances floating their way through your head like water, pushing out all the anger.

You don’t know how you ended up on the hammock with the rest of the group - excluding JJ - one arm thrown across John B., snuggled in with Pope, legs resting on Sarah and Kie’s, who are laying together the opposite way. The warmth of the sun on your arms and your friends around you is lulling you to sleep slowly, the hammock swinging gently from side to side.

You know you’re going to have to talk to JJ.

But you’re falling asleep now, and you’re losing your train of thought quickly, words floating into oblivion.

You’ll talk to JJ tomorrow.

For now, you’re going to sleep.

#obx #obx x reader #jj maybank x reader #outer banks #jj maybank #kiara carrera #sarah cameron #john b routledge #pope heyward #that's right babes this is ANGST #she's ANGRY #young!reader

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itsmoonphobic · 4 years

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Moonbow at it yet again with a new Mcyt AU-But like what else am I supposed to do?I got so much positive feedback for my royalty AU that I decided to come up with a new AU! Plus I binged all the Ocean's movies and like the main one that inspired me was Ocean's 8,that movie slaps!If you haven't watched it yet you definitely should!!Anyway-Like I said my family and I just moved and I'm getting an extreme haircut today(lmao) so I'm pretty busy but don't worry the first chapter of "Royal Buisness" is going to be out in a few weeks/months!!Love u all and hope u like it <3💤💙

📷Target Spotted💻 (Mcyt Spy AU)

Sleepyboisinc(S.B.I) -> my absolute favorite bois ♡

-The sleepyboisinc originally started of as a joke.A few five year olds have the dream of becoming secret agents and start their own Buisness.

-No one really took it seriously back in the days when the three boys would draw and write down ideas for advanced technology devices and gadgets,I mean c'mon it's only natural for kids to grow up with dreams.The childish roleplaying on the playground eventually stopped but the dream stayed.Everyone simply thought that the trio would forget about their ideas in a few years and "grow up".

-Well they were wrong.Nobody could have predicted that the three of them continued with their "shenanigans" through all of their years in highschool-

-Techno,Phil and Wilbur stayed in touch while growing up. The three of them developed such a stron brotherly bond that at some point they left out everyone else and only shared their time with eachother.Their families informed them that they should be more open and extroverted but the three of them are stubborn.

-Time skip to College.Techno went on to study Psychology and English,Wilbur went to start a musical career and Phil- he just kinda disappeared?He didn't tell them where he went to college or what he was doing after school.

-So after two years of somewhat going their separate ways and two years of Phil missing without a single trace,both Techno and Wilbur decide to meet up and look for him. What the two didn't expect is that that night their childhood dream would become reality.

-Turns out that Phil,during those two years,secretly developed the S.B.I foundation.Techno and Wilbur couldn't believe that he managed to do all of this by himself and honestly?They were more than impressed and happy.It was their life long dream afterall and the fact that Phil made it all possible was absolutely overwhelming and appreciated.

-Phil explained everything.He told them that he didn't expect it to actually turn out this good and work functionality but it did!Phil also didn't accomplish it by himself but he hired a few poeple they could use on their side.At this point Techno and Wilbur were even more in love with their new jobs that they immediately dropped out of their previous occupations.

-He showed them around and the two of them were awestruck.Phil couldn't help but smile and laugh at their reactions since he only expected it to be this way.Phil didn't have to show them how things work becouse they created and designed all of this together,Phil was only the one who made it reality.

-Everything looked like from their drawings.The whole aesthetic of the building the S.B.I was located in was amazing.The outside looked like nothing special,and that's the way it's supposed to be.People weren't ment to get suspicious and curious.So making it look like a simple buisness was perfect.

-The only thing Techno and Wilbur weren't familiar with was the new staff so Phil gladly introduced them to eachother! Techno could already tell that there are a few poeple who he clearly won't get along with aswell as people he sees himself working with quite okay.As Phil watched them interacting he couldn't help the wide smile forming on his lips: The sleepy bois are finally reunited :)

Techno N.(Blade):

Techno is one of the best if not the best spy and the one with the biggest amount of action going on.His loyalty and dedication to his job are insane.Even back when they were kids Techno was always the one to stick up for Phil and Wilbur and make sure that the kids who bully them never show their faces again.

Techno is tough and clever.He thinks before he acts.His movements aren't exactly the most precise ones but they are definitely swift.Not to mention that there are times where instead of intimidating the target into getting out the information they need Techno turns to violence.He does apologize for it afterwards though so it's chill.

Techno is a professional at his finest.Getting caught?Never. Messing up?Not Techno.Tricks or traps?Don't work- During his training arc Techno learned the ways of a spy in and out. When Techno wants something to happen or go his way he only focuses on said thing and leaves it aside once he achieves what he wanted.

Techno prefers to work alone,he is extremely shy and introverted so it isn't easy working with people he's not comfortable around or familiar with.His social anxiety is not really a big help either- (Protect him) Another fun fact is that Techno's ADHD makes him struggle with his big focus ability.But everyone in the company knows it and they know that he can't do anything about it. •Accepting friends am I right? :)

Techno is the only employee that Phil let's in on the biggest news and insights first(Apart from Wilbur) and he is also the only one he trusts with the more dangerous weapons.Techno is really good with those!

Techno's missions are the ones that mostly need to be taken care of at night-His sleeping schedule is messed up so Phil gave him the night shift.Of course Phil has days where he strictly tells Techno to take them off so he can take care of his health and sleep.Techno refuses but knows that it makes Phil happy so he takes days off for him (I love their relationship <3)

Techno's job is his number one priority.Due to the fact that he used to study and specialize in psychology as well as in English and it's History Techno is very smart. His intelligence and usage of certain words tend to confuse other people and Techno would do it on purpose just to see the expression on their faces.

May I add that Techno is very calm and sarcastic.He also tends to be very polite and cold which makes poeple uncomfortable sometimes.His ego and confidence are both massive aswell which has it's ups and downs!

Techno is really good in cartography(Maps).During highschool Techno unintentionally desroyed everyone in Geography.He didn't like the subject he was only a natural at it.(If you couldn't figure it out already I obviously had to put in an SMP Earth reference)

Techno is one hell of a pilot.Poeple seriously question themselves how he is so good at flying planes or helicopters.Why complain though?A talent like that could come in handy any time when needed.

Phil W.(1ZA):

The boss and founder of the Sleepyboisinc(S.B.I)

Phil was the one who made all of their childhood dreams come true,and he's very proud of how far he himself and his friends have come!

Phil goes on missions on very rare occasions.His main job is to stay in his office and make sure that things run smoothly and the way they are supposed to.

He counts and is known as the information center and the backup for his agents.Him going on missions is very risky since he always has to be available during everything.His main priority is that all of his agents and friends come back safely and most importantly alive from their jobs.

Becouse Phil is mostly stuck in his office busy with paper work,he can read his agents like an open book. Phil's ability to instantly make someone feel welcomed and loved can either be seen as comforting or scary.One look at you and Phil knows exactly what topics to talk about.He can't but choose to use that ability to his advantage.

Phil is a very caring and kind person.He is the definition of wholesome!S.B.I is pretty lucky to have such a understanding and nice boss to work with.

Phil tends to keep his eyes on the troublemakers(I will get to them later 👀)and Techno especially.The first one is pretty self explanatory since the nickname says it all.Techno on the other hand is in Phil's sight not becouse he's a brainless idiot but of his health issues.

He is a very patient and empathetic person it isn't in his nature to be angry or mad at someone but when he is it gets scary.To have Phil actually mad it you,you would have to fuck up big time.Poeple who have experienced Phil being angry with them have nightmares till this day.He won't be violent and he won't insult you but he will hit you where it hurts the most,he will fo under the deepest parts of your skin. (Not physically but mentally)

Phil knows the right time to be serious and the right time to have fun and joke around with his friends.After a successful mission the crew would go out and celebrate their victory.Phil has to make sure that all of his idiot agents don't get too drunk so that no laws will be broken and no unnecessary information will be spread around.Gotta keep up a good rep am I right?

Everyone in the company sees Phil as a big father figure.I mean who wouldn't?The vibes he gives of remind everyone of an overprotective dad.Whenever somebody of his agents has a problem their first instinct is to go and talk to Phil about them.Phil will gladly listen and cheer them up when he needs to <3

Wilbur S.(Dirty Crime Boy):

Wilbur is the S.B.I's decoy and undercover specialist. His biggest flex is that becouse he is so handsome and charming,Phil decided to let him be the distraction. This guy could flirt with anyone and he would have them wrapped around his finger in no time.

There is just something so exciting and addictive to taking on different personalities and outfits.Wilbur can pull out any look or personality trait.His favorite one would have to be a musician,he doesn't have to act around too much since he's in his natural habitat. Wilbur sometimes has way too much fun with his job.

There are times where Wilbur is asked to perform somewhere so that Techno or whoever is on a mission with him is able to do what they need to do.He will get caught up in the moment and forget that he is on a mission so when Phil tells Wilbur's partner to drag him off stage and calm him down they immediately do so.

Apart from that,Wilbur is extremely good at what he does.You know those guys in movies who will drug other poeple's drinks and stuff to either rob them or drag them someplace else?Yeah that guy is Wilbur. His suave attitude and velvety voice makes everyone want to have a drink with him :)

Wilbur has the power of blackmailing on his side.This guy knows everything about everyone.You smoked weed with your ex on a highschool party?Wilbur knows it all.Some shit you did when you were home alone three weeks ago?Wilbur has all the details.He knows so much shit that people who work with him are genuinely scared to get close to him just couse they fear that he will know all their secrets.

Somehow Wilbur is able to get any information that is required for a certain mission.Your grandma's name?Blood type?Favorite type of cacti?Wilbur has it all memorized in his head.Phil may have all the needed information but Wil has the dirty secrets and past shit someone has gotten themselves into.

Wilbur's favorite person to work with has to be Techno.Not only becouse of their brotherly bond but becouse Wil knows that if he's stuck somewhere Techno is always around and will get him out.Wil simply enjoys Techno's company,he doesn't talk much so it gives Wilbur enough time and silence to talk about his day or something stupid that pissed him off.

Becouse Wilbur has to work undercover and make sure that he doesn't get recognized,he is fluent in multiple languages,his most requested ones are: German,French and Spanish!!(My personal headcanon I know Wilbur doesn't speak all three of them fluently)

Wilbur is the one who gets send onto missions that require to travel to a different country.Most of the time Wilbur happily agrees but on rare occasions where he feels as if something might go wrong or when he has a bad feeling about some place he will desperately try and get Phil to send someone else.

Tommy S.(Innit) ->Proud Inniter btw <3

Sixteen years old and already a spy?Tommy is living the dream of surely everybody in his highschool.Being light and quick on his feet Tommy's job is sneaking in and pickpocketing.Need a unique antique located in a safely secured safe?Tommy's got you.A wallet with a credit card or ID?Tommy already has it.Maybe it's a watch or a jewelry piece?It's Tommy's now.

Tommy's outgoing and energetic personality is a huge boost to the company.Whenever an agent backs down from a mission,Tommy will immediately call them out for being a coward.Tommy has the mouth of a sailor so him calling you a piss baby or bitch boy is completely normal to everybody working in S.B.I

They are pretty much used to it that Tommy has no filter when it comes to his opinion on something.He is brutally honest and isn't afraid to call you out for you bullshit.Tommy can be a little too open minded from time to time which gets him into dumb situations.

Tommy has the stupid ability to make everyone hate him the moment they meet him.Tommy tends to start fights or arguments against multiple people who are way stronger and taller than him.He doesn't think before he acts and just dives head in.

Almost 99.9% of the complaints Phil receives from other companies or his familiars are from Tommy.Even though Tommy promises Phil to stay out of trouble and keep his attitude to himself,he still manages to break those promises the moment someone insults his friends or makes fun of him.Phil seriously needs to teach him some proper manners-

"The business bay" is a small alliance that Tommy has formed in S.B.I,long story short it's all the younger agents (Tommy,Toby,Bitzel,Deo and Luke)in the company working together in a group.(Mostly just becouse all four of them go to the same School and Tommy needs people to steal homework from-)

Tommy seeks attention and admiration in any shape or form.Call him an "Alpha male" and you've got your name secured on "Keep them safe" list.The only other person Tommy admires,apart from himself is Techno. Literally the smallest "good job" or "well done" sends Tommy's ego over the edge.He will brag to everybody who is stupid enough to listen to him.He will constantly try and impress Techno in any way,which ends up in Tommy getting too ahead of himself and getting embarrassed for being so clumsy.

Wilbur and Tommy have a wierd relationship.One minute they are normally interacting with eachother and the other they are trying to kill eachother.Tommy complains about Wilbur all the time,about how annoying he is and that he thinks that he's best- Though when it comes to having eachother's backs that rivalry is put aside and they work together to save both of their asses.

Neither Techno or Wilbur will admit it but when Phil sends either of them to get Tommy's ass out of some shit he has gotten himself into the two of them are worried and get very protective over him.Sure Techno teases and ignores Tommy to no end and Wilbur annoys the living shit out of him but both of them make sure to take care of Tommy like their little bro.

AHHHHH IT'S FINISHED!!ANOTHER AU HAS BEEN WRITTEN QJSJWKKQ-Sorry guys I'm very excited about this AU,I have been working on it for a few days now and I had to write down all my headcanons and ideas!Don't worry my royal AU is still a work in progress so keep in mind that the first chapter will come out soon!I hope you guys enjoyed my Spy AU and ofcourse any kind of feedback is welcomed! Love u all <3 <3

#mcyt au #minecraft youtubers #minecraft #mcyt #spy #spy au #secret agent #au #alternate universe #technoblade #ph1lza #wilbursoot #wilbur soot #tommyinnit #tommy innit #timedeo #tubbo #bitzel

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horde-princess · 4 years

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A Meta on Catra’s Relationships with DT, Scorpia, and Adora

I’m so excited to write this finally ljsdflkj okay so. I’ve been thinking about why the creators would choose to center a whole season around this new character Double Trouble. They drove the plot and played a major role in a really important part of the story, Catra’s redemption. So I wanna think more about the purpose of this character and go deeper into a couple of their scenes with Catra.

tbh Catra and DT’s very first interaction says it all: DT literally takes the form of Scorpia and tells Catra “I’m about to become your new best friend.” As the season goes on, Double Trouble replaces Scorpia as a sort of artificial confidant for Catra. But it blows up in her face and the purpose of the whole thing is to shed light on Catra’s main internal conflict: her desire for love vs. her fear of heartbreak/vulnerability.

In other words, I believe Double Trouble was introduced as a foil to Scorpia. But if we think about how Scorpia is also a foil to Adora, then that means DT is like... a foil to a foil. So they’re not directly associated with Adora but a lot of what they do relates back to her. Yeah there are a lot of layers here lmao but basically what I’m gonna analyze is how Catra’s relationships with these three characters intertwine and build off each other in season 4 to set the stage for Catra’s redemption (and catradora endgame hollaaa)

So in the beginning, Catra and DT both understand their relationship to be a business arrangement. When does that start to change for Catra, and why?

Catra’s History With Betrayal

Just think about Catra’s relationships at the start of s4.. After the portal, Adora had basically severed whatever was left of their relationship, and that was shown to be weighing on Catra all season. Scorpia and Entrapta were the only other people she cared about, but Entrapta betrayed her (first by monopolizing Hordak’s attention then by refusing to open the portal), then Scorpia dared to question her decision to send their friend to die and her presence became a constant reminder of Catra’s guilt. In fact, the mere mention of Entrapta’s name in 4x03 causes Catra to snap and yell at Scorpia “we are not friends!” ... which of course isn’t true. Catra may think Scorpia’s annoying but she confided in her, her loyalty made Catra feel like she could trust her.. and that’s exactly why Catra always tried so hard to push her away. All the betrayals in her life scarred her so deeply that she wanted to avoid emotional intimacy at all costs. I’m about to get Jungian up in this shit bc we see a deep disconnect between Catra’s outward actions (her conscious) and her inner desires (subconscious) this season and it’s this i believe that leads to her breakdown in 4x10. It’s an unsustainable way to live.

Why Catra Trusted Double Trouble

So by 4x04, Catra had sabotaged her only two relationships. She was utterly alone, and vulnerable, and Double Trouble was in the right place at the right time offering their loyalty to her.. so Catra did what any emotionally stable person would do and subconsciously used a hired mercenary to try and fill the growing void in her heart. I don’t think Catra actually cared about DT much at all, like sure they got along and that matters on some level, but I think it’s more that Catra was in a vulnerable place and DT was the only one around.

So why does Catra trust Double Trouble when she won’t let herself trust anyone else? I’ve seen some posts saying it’s because Catra is self-destructive--i.e. she only seeks love from people who won’t give it to her because she doesn’t believe she deserves love--which is super true.. but I think her motivations can be better explained by saying that Catra knew from the start that Double Trouble didn’t really care about her, and that’s why the partnership was attractive to her (at first). She thought it would be safe--no vulnerability, no risk of heartbreak. But the truth is Catra’s just not as disaffected as she wishes she was.

The moment Catra really let her guard down was when Double Trouble saved her from the collapsing building in 4x04.

can we just!! talk about this scene!!!! the way her voice shakes when she says “saving me” just, oh my god... like what a touchy subject for her, right? Shes spent her whole life resenting how Adora was always trying to “save” her from everything. I’m not sure but I think White Out (2x05) was the only other time Catra thanked someone for saving her life, and she just says “thanks for getting us out of there.” So her use of the word “save” here is special and it illustrates how deeply vulnerable Catra feels this season, and more importantly it’s a sign of character development! It’s no coincidence that the theme of saving is connected between DT, Scorpia, and Adora. It’s leading up to Catra learning to replace her resentment towards Adora with something closer to gratitude.

But while the scene connects these relationships, it also highlights their differences. After Catra displays an astounding amount of vulnerability with DT, they coolly reply “well, I live to serve... for a price, of course.”

This right here is the first step of Catra’s breakdown. Suppressed desires making themselves known, one half of her heart rebelling against the other. She was pushing away her real friends and finding hollow companionship with someone she thought she wouldn’t get attached to, but it happened anyway.

The difference between Double Trouble and Scorpia must have become glaringly obvious to Catra in that moment. Whereas Scorpia was loyal to Catra out of love, DT was mostly interested in getting paid. And she was surprised by how much that hurt. She fucking hated how much it hurt, you can see it written all over her face. It’s why she fails Scorpia’s little test in 4x06. Because of Double Trouble, Catra’s true desires were threatening to break free, so outwardly she fights against it and acts more resistant than ever to being friends with Scorpia. She castigates her, calls her annoying and incompetent, harsher than we’ve ever seen... but she didn’t expect Scorpia to hit back (we did, tho. Scorpia’s an icon).

In four words Scorpia teaches Catra a hard lesson about what it means to earn someone’s loyalty. She knew she must’ve really fucked up if she somehow managed to push away the most loyal person in all of Etheria. And again the fake nature of Catra’s relationship with Double Trouble provides a reference for her to see why Scorpia’s loyalty, based in love, was so valuable, and why she shouldn’t have taken it for granted. It also relates to Adora because, similar to Scorpia, Adora had been trying so hard these past 3 seasons to connect with Catra, but she refused to forgive her and her behavior eventually forced Adora to cut ties. So Scorpia calling her out pushes Catra towards accepting some personal responsibility for everything that happened with Adora, too. Man there are just.. a ton of implications here.

Then Catra gives Hordak a fun pep talk but really it’s just her self-projecting all over him:

At this point her hateful actions and her goal to conquer Etheria are extremely out of line with her true desires and we can see it’s really affecting her mental state. It wasn’t just one thing or person that caused her breakdown, it was a combination of Adora severing their relationship, and Scorpia’s disappointment in her, and Double Trouble’s indifference towards her. All three of these situations were playing off each other and chipping away at Catra’s carefully crafted armor, revealing a desire to be loved hidden underneath... which she continued to fight against for as long as she could. Adora and Scorpia were playing their roles in helping Catra learn to take responsibility for her life, but those relationships wouldn’t have been so effective had it not been for how they were contrasted with Double Trouble’s indifference. Anyway have I mentioned how amazing and complex this show is????

Catra Loses DT and Scorpia Around the Same Time

4x07 is the last time Catra talks to Double Trouble before they get captured by the rebels. Coincidentally, Catra realizes that Scorpia left her just one episode later, which once again points to a connection between these two characters. From 4x08 to 4x11 Catra is completely alone, feeling like she has lost everyone in her life. It sets the stage for her meltdown in 4x10. But my fave part about Scorpia leaving is how it changes the way Catra thinks about betrayal.

Even if Scorpia didn’t tell Catra where she was going in the note she left, Catra had to have assumed she was leaving to join the Rebellion because where else would she have gone right? So the two people Catra loves most have now BOTH abandoned her to join the rebellion. I don’t even wanna think about how triggering that betrayal must have been for Catra.. I don’t wanna think about how the next time Catra sees Scorpia she’s going to be a full blown princess with powers and everything, just like what happened with Adora.

But there’s a key difference between Adora and Scorpia. Catra knows at this point that Adora didn’t want to leave her behind, but she did anyway to pursue some destiny that Catra wasn’t a part of, which left her feeling betrayed. Scorpia, on the other hand--the very definition of ‘loyalty’--left her specifically because Catra pushed her away. Her fear of vulnerability manifested as anger towards someone she refused to admit that she cared about, and it pushed her away.

Once again I think Scorpia is teaching Catra a lesson about taking responsibility for some of the shit in her life. It’s a privilege that Adora lost after being careless with Catra’s trust, and thus Scorpia was the only one in a position to reach Catra and help her. But I think that the things Catra learned from Scorpia are going to play back into her relationship with Adora and allow them to reconcile (when Adora deals with her own issues too).

We can also say a little about how Double Trouble’s betrayal contrasts with Scorpia’s and Adora’s. I think their complete emotional detachment is the perfect frame of reference for Catra to be able to acknowledge that even though Scorpia and Adora left her, they DID love her, and they never stopped trying to reach out to her--at least, not until Catra crossed a line with both of them. At some point, Catra went from being justified in her feelings of betrayal to overdoing it, placing too much blame where it didn’t belong and closing the door to forgiveness. So I think that’s the role that Double Trouble played there, helping Catra see that difference. Like even if someone leaves you, hurts you, it doesn’t always mean they don’t love you. Relationships take work and understanding and forgiveness and you have to learn how to handle that or you’ll always be alone. Scorpia’s the pure embodiment of that lesson, and she’s lighting the way for Catra to navigate the much more nebulous waters of her grudge against Adora.

Double Trouble’s Betrayal

So now Catra is feeling abandoned by Scorpia and Double Trouble (her only friends) and we see the disconnect between what’s in her heart and the front she’s been putting on come to a head in 4x10 when she has that meltdown. She’s kind of losing it because her fear and heartbreak are driving her down a path that she doesn’t actually want. It’s like watching a car crash in slow motion. In 4x12 she continues to hold on desperately to the idea that beating Adora will make her happy, because at this point she doesn’t see any way to turn the car around.

There’s an absolutely fantastic scene early in 4x12 that sets up Double Trouble’s betrayal beautifully, like really it’s a masterpiece. Catra’s childhood friends walk in on her in the locker room and they’re laughing and joking around and for a second it’s like... Catra longs to be a part of that again.. To have friends, to be happy. But then Kyle accidentally kicks one of Scorpia’s old doodles (a painful reminder that she’s gone) and Catra freaks out and attacks them. Kyle’s like “we used to be friends, why are you treating us like this?” So she lets them leave, feeling alone and miserable, and THAT’S when Double Trouble waltzes in... having had just made a deal with Glimmer to double cross Catra.

God it hurts so much. The contrast between her pushing away Scorpia and her real friends, and then her childlike relief upon seeing the person who just sold her out.

This scene gives me fucking chills with the nightmare-ish music and everything.. It’s like, at this point DT is just fucking with her, they’ve already got Catra figured out. This face touch is so cruel and fits with the show’s motif of manipulative affection, too. For me it felt very disconcerting to see Catra like this... unaware that she’s been defeated yet she’s so emotionally vulnerable here, she’s like putty in Double Trouble’s hands. Scorpia leaving cracked her open and, as they’re the last person left standing with Catra’s trust, Double Trouble’s in the perfect position to come in and break her.

So the next episode 4x13 has that crazy scene where Double Trouble totally obliterates Catra and I’m not even gonna talk about it lmao because yall have already done a great job analyzing it. But I do wanna draw attention to the fact that this is the only thing she says in this whole scene:

Can you believe that’s what mattered the most to her in that moment? Not that literally everything she had been working for for the past 4 seasons had just turned to dust before her eyes, but the fact that this random mercenary she hired betrayed her. And there was no anger at all, just... heartbreak.

And then look at what she says to Glimmer afterwards (setting aside the fact that Catra is basically giving up on life...) she says nothing about the war, nothing about winning or revenge. The only thing she’s thinking about is how lonely she feels.

So by the end of Season 4, I think Catra did finally figure out what she truly wanted in life. She didn’t want to be on top just for power’s sake, she wanted people to respect her, to love her, so that no one could hurt her anymore. But she was so obsessed with winning that she ended up losing everyone’s respect. Wow haha if only she could get a second chance to earn it back the right way.... like say if, idk, she was trapped in space jail and forced to team up with her sworn enemy to survive and they came out best friends or something <:)

To sum up, Double Trouble’s role in Season 4 was to break Catra’s mask and force her to consider what she truly wants. I think their betrayal taught Catra to really appreciate what a terrible mistake she made in pushing Scorpia and Adora away. It taught her the difference between someone leaving her because they don’t care about her, and someone cutting ties with her even though they do care for her very deeply, they just couldn’t take Catra treating them like crap anymore. It showed her that what Adora did was nothing like what DT did. That’s what a betrayal feels like when the person doesn’t care about you. Someone who doesn’t care about you isn’t going to beg for your forgiveness for 3 seasons and risk being obliterated from existence just to get you back.

But the real beauty of season 4 was how Catra hitting rock bottom had almost nothing to do with Adora. With the help of other friends Catra has begun to find her own reasons to change, she’s acknowledging her guilt and heartbreak and discovering the person she wants to become. She’s learning to take responsibility instead of just blaming other people. And this character development had nothing to do with romance, just like how Adora breaking free of her destiny and learning to let go of control had little to do with Catra. I love the different perspectives on love that they give us with Catra, Adora, and Scorpia. I love how this show takes the “love conquers all” trope and subverts it, saying that sometimes.. love breaks you. Sometimes it’s not enough. Sometimes it’s used as a weapon. Sometimes you have to let go of people you love, but it opens up space for you to figure out who you are and what you want and to conquer your own demons. You’ll come out the other side with a better understanding of what real, healthy love is supposed to look like. And maybe in the end, the love you always sought will find you again, in its own time, in its own way. 💘

#OK THIS IS... A LOT. EVEN FOR ME LMAO #she ra #meta #season 4 is my fave so far i just had a lot of feelings to work through ok #would love to hear what yall think xoxo happy new year's!!

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unfortunatelysage · 3 years

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Golden (parts 1 and 2)

me writing? actually kinda realistic. ocs from my old story storm since I'm too burnt out to make new characters right now lmao

Winter has a soft spot in my heart. I'm not a fan of the muddy slush that lines the streets, nor the frostbite I inevitably get every year, or the snowstorms, or even really the holiday season. But I love the soft whites and brilliant blues, the calm snowfall, and the traveling. It's probably no secret that I look forward strongly to winter break every year, but I'm just as excited for summer.

My parents have a cottage up north we go to in the summer, I tell my coworkers.

Oh yeah, we usually go on a cruise or something, I tell my classmates.

I just like the beach! I tell my friends. You know me!

As opposed to a week and a half during the winter, I get to stay three or four weeks at Austin's in the summer. Both of us would like me to stay the whole break, but we both work and have school to focus on, and it's difficult as is to get up to a month off.

Breathing in the woodsy air, I feel a rush of joy to my insides, like a swarm of butterflies made its way to my lungs. I exhale again and continue on, admiring the skyscraping trees and massive insects and animals from afar. Everything seems in line until a massive figure crashes through the trees, coming right toward me.

Good God! I jump behind a rock and watch the figure pass. It's a giant- scratch that, a giantess. She runs past me, paying no mind, and through the trees away from Me. What the hell was that? I didn't even get a good look at her, but she was around the same height as Austin I believe.

I check the direction she came to see if anyone else follows, and no one does. No matter, I have a place to be. The rest of the trip goes well, and I arrive on time. He got a buzzer installed for me to press when I show up, so I don't have to find a way up to his doorbell. I push it and wait, rocking on the balls of my feet in anticipation.

The door opens to a crouching Austin, smiling. "It's you!"

"It's me!" I respond, smiling back. "You look great." He sports new glasses and shorter hair on the sides, as well as soft red eyeshadow under his eyes.

"You too!" He replies, raising his eyebrows real quick as he holds out his hand. I nod and step on, and he carefully carries me to the main area. "I see you got your hair done. I like the blue."

We chat for a while and catch up on things as Austin grabs ice tea for us. "Is there anything I need set up right now? Anything I can put in your room or anything?"

"About that..." Austin trails off. " I know you just arrived, but I need to make a trip real quick. Would you rather stay here, or come with?"

"Oh, I can come with. What's the trip for?"

"My friend lost her pet the other day, and I found him." With approval, he carries me to his room, slowly opening the door. "You're not afraid of snakes, are you?"

Just then, my eyes meet the slithery creature's. Little beady eyesstuck in the sides of a titanic, squirming body, a light brown with black curves around him. I noticeably shiver. "Usually, no... but you see the size of him?"

"Understandable for you, I suppose. If it makes you feel better, in general he's quite small. I'd give him 25 zents." I do the math in my head. That's still about ten feet.

"Is he... you know... human-eating?" The snake slithers across the floor a bit.

"His name is Butterscotch. I don't think he's come in contact with any humans, but I would highly doubt he would eat you. No worries anyway, I'll need to keep you in my pocket when I head over to see Carrie. She doesn't know humans exist yet, and I'm not sure if either of us are ready to tell her."

I stare blankly at him.

"She's very nice, I swear. It'll go fine. You just stay where she can't see you, I drop off Butter, we go back on our way. It'll be good. Great, even."

A sigh escapes my body, and I smile. "Fine, I'll do it. Please promise to keep Butterscotch away from me though, that's all I ask."

"Great! Ready to go?" he bends down and grabs Butterscotch with his left hand, keeping me balanced in his right. He brings me to the chest of his dark jacket as he stands again, and I jump inside before the snake can reach me. I hear a soft chuckle escape him, and he mumbles a reassurance as he turns to leave.

The pocket is dark and stuffy, and gives no help to my claustrophobia. But I have to admit it's the lesser of two evils, as I'd rather mildly suffocate in fabric than get swallowed whole by a giant snake. I trace the inside of his jacket pocket's button, noticing the golden plating hasn't rubbed away at all. It's also not too shiny, even when rays of light from outside bounce off.

"Butterscotch is away from you, you know. You haven't any need to lock yourself away completely from sight," the giant tells me.

I push the pocket open at the word and stick my head out. "Okay, genuine question. The gold on your jacket. Is that real? Like all the way pure gold?"

"Yeah, how come?" he asks, raising an eyebrow as he looks down. I crane my neck up and notice his earrings as well, little gold hoops.

"The earrings too?"

"Sure are," he toggles his earring with his free hand. "Is there a reason behind your question?"

"Yeah, where do you work and when are they hiring?"

"Gold's not uncommon, Robin... haven't you seen any gold jewelry where you're from?" He raises his hand to the pocket, slowing his walk. I climb on, wary of the snake fifteen feet away and let him raise me to his shoulder, where I situate myself.

"Yeah, for thousands of dollars!" I reach up and touch his earring, stroking the smooth gold. Small to him, sure, but a rich golden crown to any human.

"I can feel all of this," he whispers after a few minutes. Feeling that blood rush to my cheeks, I shoot my hand down, and I feel him vibrate in a laugh. "Sorry to get your hopes up, but I'm almost there. You'd best be getting back in. He brings his hand back up, and I eye Butterscotch as I'm lowered back into this pocket, diving in.

He rings the doorbell to a house I didn't get to see before hiding, and the sound of a door opening. A voice follows, smooth and sweet like dropping honey, though awfully loud.

"Austin, how good to see you! Is that... oh, wonderful! Please, come in."

I feel Austin's chest vibrate as he replies, also very loudly. I guess I forgot this is how he speaks normally. "Oh, I was actually planning on dropping him offc, since today I-"

"Please, I insist! I'll only be a minute. We haven't properly talked in ages!" The first voice tells him, and I feel him push forward, walking in. What? This wasn't the plan.

The giant sits down slowly, still holding the snake. I hear the other giant- Carrie, was her name? She takes a seat as well across from him, and I hear a clinking sound. Prepared refreshments. Austin always told me how important hospitality is in his culture, though giants tend to fly solo.

The two make small talk, and Austin's still holding the damn snake! I'm trapped in a tiny hell just feet away from a killing machine. I hear him slowly start drinking whatever refreshment the giantess got for him, and I reach back and punch his chest to remind him of the mission at hand.

He starts coughing, setting down the drink. He taps against his chest next to me, regaining himself. "So sorry," he finally gets out. "Swallowed wrong."

"No worries at all. Where did you find Butter? I've been out all day everyday for the last week looking around."

"Right out Back behind my house, would you believe? Halfway up a tree. I nearly missed him, he blended in with the bark! Once I noticed, I brought him in and got ready to go, then came here."

"Give her the snake," I murmur.

"Did you hear something?" Carrie asks.

"Uh, no! Not really," he responds a tad too quickly. "Would you like Butterscotch back? I bet he's been itching to see you." I feel movement, likely his arms holding the snake out.

"Yes, in just a second as I put the glasses away. You're finished, right?"

"Oh, yeah. Thank you." She stands up by my guess, and walks out of the room. His voices hushes to a whisper. "You didn't have to hit me."

"You didn't have to come in!" I retort, "Give her the snake and let's go."

She comes back in. "Did you say something?"

"Oh, no I didn't. Here's Butterscotch." Austin holds the snake out again, but then things move in slow motion.

Since I was in the pocket without sight of the situation, I can't give the most accurate idea of what happens, but here's what I assume and what I know.

What I assume: The snake either sees me move, or smells me, or something like that. He slips quickly between Austin's hands toward the pocket.

What I know: A giant motherfucking snake sticks his giant motherfucking head into the pocket, inches away from me. Naturally, I let out a scream of terror. Perhaps a little less naturally, I dive out of the pocket and grab tightly onto the gold button, hanging on and still screaming. Austin whips the snake away from his pocket and shoves it in Carrie's direction, throwing me off the pocket and into Austin's hand, which he throws into the right place at the right time as I tumble across his skin.

Butterscotch slides around Carrie's shoulders and I finally catch a good look at her. She's the giantess that ran across the woods, who was so quiet in her movements. I can only describe her as golden. Tanned, glowing skin paired with tight, bouncy, honey-colored curls. She wears gold sun and moon earrings and a matching necklace, alongside a flowy yellow shirt. Pure gold. More importantly, her hazel eyes meet mine.

The two of us lock eyes like this for a fair few seconds, and she makes the first move. "Austin, what... what is she?"

He brings his hand closer to himself. "I didn't want you to find out. Her name is Robin, she's a..." he looks down, expecting me to speak, but my vocal chords are fixed in place. "A human. Like us, but smaller."

"She's so pretty... can I see her closer?"

"She can speak, ask her yourself." Austin looks down, noticing me still staring at her. "Well, usually she can. Robin?" He prods me with his index, and I snap out of it.

"You think I'm pretty?" I ask. "You're unbelievably pretty!"

"Aww, thank you!" she replies, lowering her voice after realizing I'm a bit quieter. "Austin, how come you didn't tell me about your friend?"

"I wasn't really sure how you'd take it. I didn't expect you both to be on good terms so fast... she sure wasn't on my side right away," he laughs.

Carrie and I end up not having much in common, but she's real fun to talk to. Eventually she tells us to come back sometime, and we start heading back after saying our goodbyes and Austin hoisting me onto his shoulder.

"Robin, I'm so sorry, that went so horribly, oh my goodness, I hope you're not-"

"I'm fine, Austin," I laugh. "I didn't expect it to go well, but in the end we're all fine! Carrie is nice, Butterscotch didn't eat me and we all got to connect. I think it's a win-win for all of us."

"Oh, well I'm happy you're not upset. I bet you're real tired though, let's settle in a bit once we get back to my place."

"Sounds like a plan," I reply, leaning against his neck.

#g/t #g/t community #giant #giant tiny #giant/tiny #tiny #gt #gt community #loooong post

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kornyo · 5 years

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Hello, my name is korny and some of you know me as a former beta, then sweet elite’s former clothing artist, that also (singlehandedly) drew the animated mini-game with momo and the little coffee and coin icons. I never had a proper introduction which is why probably most of you see me for the first time now.

I didn’t plan on publicly making a statement, but it has been brought to my attention that the se management said rude and nasty things that – most importantly – are just plain bullshit and I cannot let this be said without a proper response.

If you click this link you will find a google doc with various screenshots, showing what exactly has been going on that made me (& cecile) finally leave the team. I made the doc and the screens a few days prior to leaving (April 2019) and already shared it with all the betas and some staff back then, but also some people on tumblr who have come into my dms asking me to clarify what happened. I feel the right time has come to share this link with the public, although it might be a little confusing to understand for some.

Now, what bothers me the most about serenas ugly behaviour from the past few days is the topic of “’lazy’ cecile”. I’d like to clarify that this entire post is MY opinion, and was written because *I* am angry about this, I was not forced to write this whatsoever by Cecile or anyone else. I’ve kept my mouth shut so far bc I could not be bothered, but this is where I draw the line.

“Lazy Cecile” has been something even BEFORE my beta days (which started in January 2018). Serena used (and still does, as you can see in her latest posts) to call Cecile “lazy” a lot jokingly, but saying it that often didn’t make it funny anymore, and it certainly isn’t a nice thing to say to a good friend. She continued to say it even after Cecile approached her not to.

To add, Cecile is - if not THE - most hardworking person that ever participated in the production of the game. While juggling a full-time job, she also drew AND redrew ALL the sprites, for a short time also drew ALL the illustrations WITH customization (2 genders x 3 three different hairstyles), AND new backgrounds because An already left the team. And that’s just the art she did! She also took part in writing large chunks in almost every chapter, even writing an entire big ass chapter 7 ON HER OWN, which she now has posted on her blog @retconomics (which Serena in response tried to make us afraid by telling us how merciful she is by not suing us for copyright. Your case wouldn’t be that strong honey LMAO not without a contract anyway 😉 ). ALL WHILE WORKING A FULL DAY JOB AND GETTING A DOG, WHICH ALSO REQUIRES A LOT OF ATTENTION. Meanwhile, it took Serena several months to almost a YEAR now, guessing from the release date, to write chapter 6 and it wasn’t a rare case for her to magically loose the file or it getting corrupted. So please tell me how the fuck cecile is lazy? In any fucking way?

Her time schedule was very demanding, so of course we had to cheat a little bit, which brings me to my next point: professionalism. Serena claims that Cecile was very unprofessional, “cutting corners” and her art “unpolished” and “not up to par”. In her example of ‘proper’ professionalism, serena used this image:

Illustrating how the new artist does things better and more polished.

This is where I call huge, MAJOR bullshit.

I have worked on the sprites with cecile. Due to the tight deadline Serena has given us, Cecile would give me the rough sprites and I would finish them & look for any spots that were smudges/did not have clear edges or full transparency. Wanna know how these files looked like?

Hm! Absolutely no fucking different! The expressions were all on one layer, unlike in the example above, but as Serena said: she didn’t say anything against that. That was because Serena wanted to pump content out, which, fair enough, and she needed everyone in the team to “set priorities”, as she said. And adding so much customization was NOT a priority at that time and she knows it.

However, if it DID bug her that much, it’s her own fault if she won’t say “hey Cecile, could you put all the brows on one single layer, all the mouths etc”. And if her excuse is that Cecile lacked the time, I could’ve done it just as easily, as I worked on the sprites anyway and did not have the huge workload cecile had at that time. If the manager is unhappy with their product, they should say something, otherwise nothing will happen. So, if Serena was unhappy with the ‘lack’ of expressions (lets be real tho, 5 expressions isn’t lacking at all)? Her fault.

“Not to mention, all of the sprites will be polished and the artstyle will finally be consistent throughout the entire game (something that our old artist really struggled with at times). Also, both Alita and Ariel are awesome at what they do, take growth and sustainability seriously, and constantly look for ways to improve and build onto the world of Sweet Elite.” Taken from here (x).

Ah, yes. You want consistency and yet hired two artists with two very different styles, and even *advertised* it as something good. Also, if somebody improves art wise, they rarely stay the same way. Art is FLUID. Art CHANGES, especially while improving. And if ceciles art was so unprofessional looking and unpolished for you serena, why didn’t you just tell her to stop drawing? Why not “get rid of the garbage” sooner? Would have saved both you and cecile the clownery that has happened and is going on right now.

(taken from here)

Also calling Cecile a weakness while she literally held the weight of the entire game on her shoulders while having to provide so much art and writing while you failed to write even one chapter during all that? You’re pettier than you care to admit.

I literally could go on and on about this, but this is already 1k words, so im gonna wrap this up. But I am so mad about this “boo hoo there is a narrative spun against me ☹” “I was creatively constricted by my cowriters” (also bullshit lmao, but another topic). You’re just a big liar and an awful person overall, and don’t get me started on your boyfriend.

While you’re getting “rid of the garbage”, please also remove MY minigame which I was forced to make while I was collecting money for my dog, and pay me 100€. You can have the clothes as I actually *agreed* on doing that for no money. 25€ for all the coffee and coin icons would be appropriate as well.

Now, as a former fan thats been on this journey since 2015, I am very dissapointed in how this game is developing. You’re taking this game into a direction you promised not to - not diverse, full of clichés, mainstream. As a fan, this broke my heart. A lot.

I hope you learn that your actions have consequences and that I will NOT be quiet if you decide to spit some lies again.

#sweet elite #se-serena #long post

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