#and then there are certain things I queue back up every time I see them

[girasollake]

Hi! Can I request a smut imagine with prompt 48 and trope 8 with Theodore Nott.

She’s a slytherin too and a badass bitch who everybody wants to be or date

Thank youuu!

✧ theodore nott x fem!reader x jealousy x "you. are. mine."✧

(this request is a part of my writing event, here is the link to the masterlist of the fics i'll be publishing from said event:) )

this took longer than i expected, thank you for your request anon! x

told u guys i’d post smth… surprise!!!!

warnings: 18+ MINORS DO NOT INTERACT, p in v sex, some swear words, some slight cedric x reader, theo being bitchy ig, fingering, general sex stuff, orgasm denial, ummmmmm yeah i think that’s it

i’ll reread it later to fix mistakes cuz rn it’s 2 am where i live and i’m going to bed bye

•❅───✧❅✦❅✧───❅•

Your relationship with Theo was complicated. At least in your mind that was the most suitable word for this dynamic, you could never find anything else that would quite describe it. You were friends, that’s for sure, this was the only thing you were certain of. Some days you had found yourself tangled in his bedsheets, his soft fingers caressing your back as you lingered in his scent. But, there were also days when you didn’t speak to him at all, strolling through the halls and seeing him tug a piece of hair behind the ear of some Ravenclaw girl while simultaneously giving her his infamous smile. Even though you also flirted and went on dates with others, something inside your guts sunk down each time you saw him with a girl who was not you. And you could barely handle it. Every time you promised yourself you’ll never sleep with him again or give him your attention, you’d always end up doing the opposite. There was something about him that lured you in, it was toxic, but so divine. So, whenever his lips connected to yours in a hungry kiss, you’d forget about all of the other women he probably does this with. It was just you and him and your only thought during these moments was to stay with him like that forever.

‚-it’s not like it’s that important.’

‚Huh?’ You lifted your head and met Pansy’s annoyed face. ‚Sorry, what were you saying?’

¨What is going on with you lately?´She shook her head and sighed. ´I asked if you have a date for the ball.’ She then added.

‘Oh, well, not really.’ You shrugged.

‘Seriously? Is this about Theo again? I’ve told you multiple times that there is a fucking queue of guys just waiting for you and all you do is always go back to him.’ She huffed. ‘What about Mason? Louise? Henry? They were all head over heels for you, I don’t believe they didn’t ask you at least once.’

‘They did. I just said no.’ You mumbled and avoided her angry gaze.

SShe groaned and took a sip of her butterbeer. ‘I was not going to tell you this, but I see there is no other option.’ Pansy took a deep breath. ‘I heard the boys talking about the ball and Nott wants to take Arisa.’

You swallowed a big gulp in your throat and looked down into your drink. You expected that something like this would happen, you just didn’t think you wouldn’t be prepared to hear it.

‘’M sorry.’ She looked at your numb expression with caring eyes.

‘It’s okay Pans.’ You gave her a soft smile. ‘Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s time to move on.’

Even though you tried to not think about him for the next few days, it was unusually hard. He was on your mind non stop, like a song playing on repeat. On top of that, everyone was talking about the upcoming event. While walking through the halls you overheard people gossiping about the pairs, discussing what they are gonna wear and you were also a witness to roughly 7 performances of the boys creatively asking their crushes to go with them.

You walked into the courtyard and took a seat on the nearest free bench. You pulled out your sketchbook in hopes to finally draw something. Truth is, you didn’t remember the last time you practiced your beloved activity, not that you didn’t have time, you just didn’t have any ideas. This time wasn’t different, you looked around and then your gaze rested on the empty page before you. You made a soft line with your pencil and stopped, it was like your hand didn’t want to listen to your mind. You groaned and closed the sketchbook to put it in your bag again. While doing this, you felt a presence in front of you. Looking up, you saw Cedric Diggory, a charming smile plastered on his face.

‘Hi, do you have a moment?’ He asked and you stood up to face him.

‘Of course.’ You smiled.

‘I have a question.’

‘If you want my help with something, then no. I can barely finish my own essays and-‘

‘No, that’s..’ He chuckled. ‘I was wondering if you’d want to go to the ball with me?’

‘Oh..’ You bit your lip softly from the inside. ‘I.. I’ll think about it. Is that okay with you?’

‘Surely, just don’t take too long, darling.’ He sent you a wink and walked out of the courtyard.

Later that night you were studying in your dorm, soft music was playing in your headphones as you scribbled some sigils for one of the classes. Your back was turned to the door, so you didn’t hear that someone came in. It was the feeling of being observed that made you move your head to inspect the room and there he was. Theodore Nott stood next to your door, his arms were crossed and you couldn’t quite read his expression. You grabbed your headphones and took them off.

‘Knocking exists.’ You told him.

‘Not for me.’ He replied sternly.

‘What are you doing here, Theodore?’ You fixed your position on the bed so that you were fully facing him. ‘Don’t you have any other hoes to tend to?’

‘Are you going to the ball with Diggory?’ He avoided your question.

‘Why do you care?’ You stood up.

‘Answer me.’ He took a step closer to you.

‘Maybe I am, maybe I’m not.’

‘For fucks sake, stop being a brat and answer the question.’ He said through gritted teeth.

‘It’s none of your business.’ You replied while stepping closer to him and poking your finger into his chest.

His scent filled up your nose and you felt this forbidden feeling again. Your body was lustful, for him, but you couldn’t let him win again.

He chuckled, ‘See, that’s where you’re wrong.’

You scoffed, ‘Fine. Yes.’ You spat at him. ‘I’m going with Cedric. Is that what you wanted to hear?’

His eyes darkened at the confession, which wasn’t even true. You just wanted to get on his nerves and see what he would do. You didn’t even have time to react before he pinned you to the wall and hovered over you. Your breath hitched and you tried your best to avoid his eyes, because if you looked into them, you’d lose.

‘No, you’re not.’ He stated. ‘You are not going with anyone.’

‘Why? Why the fuck do you care so much?!’ Your eyes were glued to the ceiling.

He gripped your face with one of his hands and forced you to look at him. You closed your eyes.

‘You.’ He whispered and brought his lips closer to yours before breathily adding the rest. ‘Are. Mine.’

The sound of his voice was angelic and it sent a certain feeling down to your core. You tried your best to resist but your eyes fluttered open and met his. You lost.

He grabbed your face and connected your lips in a hungry kiss. You whimpered into his mouth and cursed yourself in your mind. Why was he so addictive? Why couldn’t you quit? He just felt too good to be true. Kissing you in all the right places, his fingers touching where you needed him most, every time you felt him inside of you, it felt like heaven.

He took a few steps back and tried to not break the kiss. He pushed you onto the mattress and with one of his hands he pushed all the books off the bed. He left wet kisses along your jawline and you moaned at the feeling. He discarded both of your shirts and attached his lips to your chest, leaving a couple love bites along the way.

‘I want you to say it.’ He mumbled into your ear.

‘Hm?’ You were brought out of your trance.

‘I want you to admit you’re mine.’

‘But am I?’ He stopped kissing your neck and gripped your throat.

‘Are you?’ He raised his brow and smirked challengingly, knowing you’d fold under him.

You stared deep into his eyes and swallowed harshly because of his grip, before replying, ‘I’m yours.’

‘Good girl.’ He let go of your neck and connected your lips once again.

Soon enough both of you were a sweaty mess, clothes laying somewhere on the wooden floor, soft sounds escaping your lips as he pumped his fingers in and out of you. His breath on your neck and occasional kisses made you feel dizzy, his fingers making you squirm from the pleasure, but it wasn’t enough.

‘I need to feel you.’ You breathed out and Theo didn’t waste a second.

He positioned himself on top of you and slowly entered your aching pussy. You threw your head back and he used that to immediately attach his lips to your neck once again.

‘’S okay, darling. You’re doing so good f’me.’ He whispered to help you relax.

His voice made you let go of the tension in your lower body, finally allowing him to move at a pace so perfect for both of you. He lifted you up and spinned both of you, so that you were on top of him. His thrusts became quicker and stronger, one of his hands was caressing your breasts, while the other rubbed your clit so deliciously. You cried out his name a few times when you were close, but he always stopped just then. He just smirked every time and continued his actions, it turned him on, watching you whine on top of him. He felt he was getting closer to his release, so he sped up again, and this time his hand stayed on your sweet spot. You reached your high with a loud moan and threw your head back, your hand grabbing Theo’s arm. He released inside of you with a loud groan and you used that to push away his hand which was still rubbing circles on your bud, too sensitive for more. You collapsed on top of him and gave him a peck on his collarbone. Theo reached for the blanket and covered the two of you.

‘I lied.’ You mumbled.

‘What?’

‘I’m not going with Cedric.’ You replied softly. ‘I told him I’d think about it and..’

‘Good.’ He interrupted. ‘You’re going with me then.’

‘Am I?’ You looked up at him playfully. ‘I thought you were taking Arisa.’

‘Who?’ He replied and you giggled. ‘She asked me to go. But I refused.’

‘Why? She’s a nice girl.’

‘Maybe. But she isn’t you.’ He tucked a strand of hair behind your ear. ‘And I belong solely to you.’

•❅───✧❅✦❅✧───❅•

@ girasollake 2024

#imagine #x reader #🤍 - girasollake writing event ☾ ⋆* #theo nott x you #theo nott x reader #theodore nott x reader #theodore nott #theo nott #theo nott x y/n #theo nott x fem!reader #theo nott smut #theo nott imagine #theodore nott x you #theodore nott x fem!reader

[m0chisenpai]

Just Around The Riverbend

Pre-Avatar Way of the Water

Jake Sully x daughter!reader

I feel like we can all agree that Jake is THE king of girl dads.

Jake liked to give each of his children his time as they grew up. One thing he never wanted to make the mistake of was neglecting any of his children. He wanted each and every one of them to have a day of his undivided attention. Whether it was flying his ikran with Lo’ak, hunting with his eldest. Letting his girls lead him on an exploration through Pandora’s forests there was something unique, something special that he always made sure to treasure with his children. 

For you, it was the water. On especially warm days you’d beg your father to take you down to the waters when he wasn’t leading a hunting party. And how could he say no? You’d pout your lips and look up at him with those big beautiful eyes you’d inherited from your mother and he was like putty in your hands. 

Your fathers hand pressed into your stomach gently as the pa’li languidly trotted through the thickets of the forest. 

You whined silent and pressed back into your father looking up at him. And though he didn’t look down he could see the pout on your lips and the impatient look in your eyes. “Are we close yet?” He knew for certain your impatience was directly from him. 

But he wouldn’t fall prey to those pouty eyes again. “Not yet, what does mommy say?”

“Be patient,” and you settled back into your father deciding to busy yourself with your hair which you twirled and pinched at the braids that silently clinked together. Mommy braided it similar to her own adding the pretty beads you would twirl with as she held you in her arms. While your father indulges in your explorations you prefer the comfort of your home in your mothers arms together. 

In the brightness of the night in the home tree on the branches with a view of the stars, your mother would tenderly braid your hair. Slowly she’d twist and plait while her songs filled the night air lulling you into a near slumber. And on some nights you’d join in having memorized them by heart. Your mother would coo and praise you, telling you one day you’d sing for the people. 

Your daydreaming unbeknownst to you was enough to keep you distracted for the remainder of the journey. When you felt your father finally slowing down you perked up. A beautiful fall filled with small creatures led down a ways. The sounds of the water and animals were peaceful, and the beauty of it all left you in awe. 

Your father disconnected his queue and helped you down, but as soon as you feet touched the grass you shot like a bullet into the water. 

And Jake watched on huffing with a smile as he watched your face light up with every splash you made. It was like Eywa was smiling down on you with how the sunlight beamed so beautifully down onto you. No matter how many times he took you to fly or ride out into the forests, you were always left amazed by the beauties of Pandora.

You looked like a princess out of a fairy tale.

“Daddy come in!” Your squeals shook Jake out of his thoughts and he led the pa’li down a way to drink from the waters before sitting along the grass, plunging his feet into the cool waters. You pouted and swam toward your father grabbing his ankle and pulling as hard as you could. But you’d need at least ten more of you if you wanted to pull your father into the water!

And so you pulled again letting out a low growl that your fathers ears picked up on, “oh? Is that a naughty nantang I hear?” You giggled letting out more of your scary growls this time playfully nipping your fathers hands that attempted to pry you away. “Oh and this one bites too! Well…” Your father let out a mighty roar and in one quick move scooped you into his arms twirling the both of you into the water.

Your squeals and giggles were like music to his ears as he held you high above and then brought you down to blow a big raspberry into the side of your face. Your hands pushed against your father's face pleading with him to stop. When you were finally left breathless he let you down to hold you into his side, he smoothed your wet braids out from your face to get a good look at your face. 

“Has the naughty nantang learned its lesson?” Your bubbling giggles were enough for him to know that you were far from done. 

You would spend the entirety of that afternoon splashing in the waters with your father. You’d swim together down the lazy rivers and race your father back to the waterfall. He claims it was a tie but you let your father win because he wasn’t the strongest swimmer like you were. The naughty nantang came back for revenge but the mighty Toruk Makto tamed the beast in an instant. 

And just as the sun slowly began to disappear from the sky Jake brought out Neteyam’s old bow and arrows. Your fathers eyes latched onto a plump fish that was attempting to hide away between the rocks. 

“Right there,” you whispered to the breeze, allowing your fathers hands to adjust your stance. 

“Careful. Breath through here.” He pressed onto your stomach which flexed from the deep breath you took and then, “release.” the bow shot out right into the fish. You waded into the water and scooped the flopping fish up holding it up to your father who praised you and asked if you wanted to try again. 

You’d caught three others lying in a pile next to the two of you as you watched the sun slowly eclipse, eating berries you had snuck from your grandmother. In actuality she knew you had a taste for them and always left them out in a place that was easy enough for you to pocket.

Your feet slowly kicked through the waters as your head lay on your fathers arm. You quietly hummed into the silence of the oncoming night. A sweet song of thanks. And so with your eyes closed you focused on your silent prayer. You thanked Eywa for the fish you caught, for this day with your father and for your father who looked down at you with a sweet love in his eyes at your swaying. 

“What are you singing babygirl?” 

Your eyes remained pressed shut in focus but in just barely a whisper you answered, “to the great mother, I wanted to thank her.”

“Oh, what are you thanking her for?” He knows you liked to practice the thanks to Eywa that hunters whispered, but you recited it perfectly with him for the fish you’d caught. 

“You daddy.” You didn’t see the lone tear that Jake failed to contain, but he didn’t care. He would weep for days at the love that filled his heart for you. And so he leaned down and pressed his forehead to your own gently as to not interrupt your singing and whispered, “yeah, and I thank her for you too babygirl.”

#jake sully #jake sully x daughter reader #sully family #avatar x reader

[oneknightstand-if]

Thank you much for answering so many asks, I love coming back every 4hrs to see what's new 💕

How would the ROs react to a sick MC stuck in bed with a high fever?

The queue is finally back down to slightly over a week, so the 3AM slot should be dropped by the time this posts. Although it's not 3AM in most of the world at the moment....

The section I just wrote (and am currently code checking) actually directly references this... the awakened Harbingers are immune to Pestilence. Which means no more normal sicknesses for them.

So, assuming the MC got chewed on by a demon and is sleeping it off after getting healed...

Merlin: The one who did said healing. They know that they're not the best of healers (it's just one of the many, many things they can fill in for in a pinch), so they're fussing around a bit to make sure everything went smoothly.

Adrian: Reading a book by the MC's side. Won't be leaving until MC wakes up.

Arthur: Is the one who told Merlin to keep an eye on the MC while he's out killing said demons who did this.

Percy: You now have a spring onion in your bed. It's up to you to decipher the meaning behind this.

4̸0̵4̵ ̴E̷r̴r̷o̴r̴ ̷N̵o̵t̵ ̵F̸o̴u̵n̷d̴: Uh... early on they're more likely to be the reason the MC ended up in that bed in the first place.

Cassandra: Has snuck in to make certain that Merlin's magic actually worked and no other steps need to be taken.

Gwen: Flustering by the bed. (Or in the bed too if she's the main RO, because in that case the demon would've nommed on her too)

Vivian: If she's here then the MC is not in bed. She is the proper healer that Merlin isn't.

Lorelei: Is off with Arthur on a demon-kicking rampage.

Broderick: He's obviously also getting his beauty sleep since there's just as obviously nothing he can do here (and by that I mean he only gets up once or thrice to check on the limb that got chewed in)

#oks-asks #oks-ROs #interactive fiction #one knight stand #oneknightstand #oks-Pestilence

[the-phantom-author]

Hasan Piker | Stream Appearance headcanons

I'm in so much pain rn it's not even funny, imma take some pain killer and sleep. Reblogs always welcomed. Request are open!

Partner streams with Hasan are very chaotic in general. However nothing would truely match the partner reveal twitch stream I imagine the stream would have “Secret special guest” or something in the title. I would start out as a normal stream, personal life, politics, and so on until it's about 2-3pm. The entire time He’d be staying that there is someone coming later, and they need to be on their best behavior . When talking about his personal life at the start of the stream he’d mention that his partner is staying over and swiftly moving on, not an uncommon thing for him to do, so nothing was really thought of.

When you show up, he introduces you by saying “Chat, introducing to you, for the first time on any platform, my partner.” Queue chat losing their collective mind, and starting to ask any and all questions they can think of. He’s incredibly watchful of chat during this time, and instantly banning anyone who sends a chat saying or implying something rude about you. This is also followed by the obligatory Joe Rogan video that he makes girls watch when they first appear on stream.

After the reveal stream I can imagine you becoming a recurring person, mostly tiny cameos. Like, every so often your hand will pop into frame to hand him something, water or food. It always causes him to stop what he’s in the middle of doing at that moment and thank you, he could be knee deep in a 10 minute stun lock and just have to hand him a water bottle and he’ll come to a full stop until you leave the room at which point he’ll pick his little rant back up.

I can also see stream bits that include you. Painting streams (more on that later), movie reviews, true crime, and other react andy things are not uncommon things for you to be on stream for. For example he would let you just rant about any movie you’ve watched, recently or not, for like thirty minutes. Like, yes girl, explain Tinkerbell and the Great Fairy Rescue to chat, they’ll love it.

Or he’ll get you to watch older reality TV shows, and videos that pertain to your interest. You know these J-Aubery mini-docs that he’ll watch, he’ll also get you to watch them. Anytime something comes up that you don’t understand, he’ll make sure to pause it so he can explain it to you until you do. If you are watching something and he doesn’t get it but you do, he does expect you to explain it. Sometimes he’ll have you explain things to him on stream just because he likes to show off how smart you are to chat.

Sometimes when you go to give Kaya some pats, you hover in the background. Mainly when you're interested in what he is watching/doing or when you’re trying to figure out just what he’s going off about, I can only imagine how confusing it must be to walk into the middle of him being stunlocked by some chatter.

He will absolutely make fun of how short you are, no matter your actual height, because man is built like a brick house and everyone is smaller than him.

I almost forgot about IRL streams. Please find a way to go on any and all IRL streams with him. Especially if it’s some kind of shopping stream. Take every chance you can to fix his fashion sense, it’ll never take but you should still try.

He’d also take you to Shitcamp and the Streamer Awards. I know they are not his live streams but he likes you being there. You’re not really a contestant or anything, but you take part in certain games and activities. Chat loves seeing you in the background, not really participating but still being iconic.

#hasanabi x reader #hasan x reader #hasanabi #hasan piker x reader #hasan piker #hasan

[rosedominatesyou]

Bedtime Stories w/ Rose

ੈ✩‧˚ In The Clouds ‧˚ੈ✩

(Bedtime Story #4)

Hello again my little pups. Mommy is here with another tale to help ease you to sleep. It isn’t as exciting as the last ones but maybe that’ll help make your eyes heavy anyway. Keep this in your likes until you’re cozy and ready for bed. 💗

Before reading: Although I wish I could tell you all the names of the beautiful places I went to in this story, I’ve withheld certain details out of respect for my own privacy.

Everyone in my life knows how much I love birds. That’s sorta my main personality trait. Their imagery is everywhere, and you’ll start to understand why when you look a little deeper. Here’s what’s been captivating my thoughts lately, besides all of you. I hope you enjoy.

~'*•.¸♡¸.•*'.・。゜✭・.・✫・。.'*•.¸♡¸.•*'~

Please make a queue of the following 2 songs: “Fill Into Me” by Anju, and “Slow Dancing - Hazel Remix” by Aly & Aj.

Both therapists I’ve ever had at some point said to me, “It sounds like you know what all your problems are.”

As the person experiencing them/inflicting them upon myself, yeah, I knew exactly what was happening to me, but isn’t the point of sharing your feelings and negative actions with someone else supposed to make you want to be a better person? To let you hear those things out loud so that you’d want to change?

I didn’t think I was going to, and after talking to professional help, even they seemed conflicted if maybe I was just making it all up for the drama. Maybe I really was the cause of my own misery.

I was tired of it all, even if at the time I couldn’t stop myself. There was a person in my life that I’m not ready to talk about that really fucked me over and changed the way I think. It was 2020, and with everything going on in the world, all I wanted was to hang on to a friend. They left. And they were the only friend I had.

It was late into the evening at my current job, but back then I used to work nights. I was walking through the part of the warehouse that has all of our truck receiving docks when I heard a familiar sound, the little chirps of baby birds.

They had built the nest years ago inside one of the truck docks, and year after year they came back and rebuild it in the same spot. If you roll up the doors to let a truck driver in, the birds would get scared and fly deep into the warehouse, typically not finding their way out.

I stood there, alone late one night, staring up at the little nest that was caked to the side of the cement wall. I have no idea what kind of bird that is, I remember thinking to myself. I knew what a dove was, they used to nest every year at my childhood home, but these little birds were something totally different. I realized at that moment that I didn’t know jack-shit about birds, and they are everywhere. It sorta hit me harder than I thought it was going to.

If you can’t tell by my lead-up to this story, I was looking for something to captivate my thoughts - something to make me stop thinking about that friend that left me hurt and used.

Asking myself about the little birds that evening made me go to a book store on my next day off and buy a pocket field guide to the birds in my area. I read the whole thing cover to cover. I hadn’t absorbed a book like that in a long time. So many amazing variations with such unique range maps, plumage, and living habits.

If you were curious (and my hint about the description of their nest didn’t give it away), the birds that I see at my work are Barn Swallows.

I was hooked. I purchased some more detailed field guides and started joining groups online that were into birdwatching. “Birders” as they call themselves, people in my own town were posting the most beautiful pictures I’d ever seen, with captions that described the exact species down to the Latin name and seasonal variety.

I wasn’t even planning on going out the day that I did. I wanted to try to take some pictures like I had been seeing in my group. I had a camera, but nothing like what some of the people were sporting. I also had no clue where to go; sure you can just go walk around anywhere, but where was I likely to see the most? Basically at random with no input from my group, I picked a local reservoir to drive out to.

I was shaking as I got out of the car at the first ever ‘birding’ location i’d go to, feeling nauseous as I set up my camera. “This is stupid this is stupid you look like a creep this is so stupid,” I couldn’t help repeating to myself out loud as I began down the first walking path I saw.

My own words work, making me turn around suddenly and go back to the car. There’s barely anyone around but the 2 or 3 people who glance across to me is too much to bear. My hands could hardly put the lens cap back on because of how much I was trembling.

You drove all the way here, I try to encourage myself as I conceal my body behind the open trunk, other people do it. Just go walk around.

I stop putting everything away and just stand there for a second, breathing and feeling.

You wanted this.

I get my dslr back out, the lens attached to it being the biggest one I owned: 200mm. I had gotten it as a present many years ago, and loved taking pictures around my house, but had never taken my camera with me out in public. Something about walking around with it in my hands made me feel so out of place, but I tried to just push past that and start walking again.

Unknown to me back then, the location and time of year I picked were both rather dismal. The lake was desolate of animal life. If there aren’t any fish, rodents, or trees to perch on, birds won’t be attracted. It was also summer, and though that may seem like a good time of year for a person, the best time to witness a large variety of birds is during their two migrations each year: spring and fall. Most birds, besides natives that stay year round, have already settled into their northern territories for the Summer. I live in California, and while we are blessed with an insane number of species, we are also basically just a giant highway for birds traveling between their summer territories in Canada/Alaska, and their wintering nesting sites in Mexico/South America.

When I got home from my first outing and took a look at my pictures, I was very disappointed. Most were too dark, too far away, or way too blurry to make anything out. The only birds I managed a decent photo of were a Western Bluebird pair, but even then I was not happy with what I had taken. I was being too hard on myself, expecting a lot out of a person who was just starting out something new.

Two days later I went to a local camera store and bought a 300mm lens. Not a huge difference, but my confidence became more noticeable in the shots I took the next few outings.

The songs I had you add to a queue are just a couple that I would listen to when out birding. Calming, peaceful songs, i naturally always hear birds chirping and grasses swaying in the wind overlapping with the music while I listen now.

The feeling of discovering birds was overwhelming. I’d see something new and my heart would race so fast. It felt like falling in love. My feet would start to run without looking down as my eyes remained glued on the bird in my vision.

One time my partner Jamie and I were out at a wildlife reserve when we saw what we thought was a Golden Eagle. The massive raptor was dark overall and was calling loudly as it soared above us. We ran down the winding paths, loosing sight of it and only being able to follow the bird by the shrill call it made overhead.

Finally we found it again, perched on a tree that hung sideways over a cliff. The sun was shinning right on its face and I started snapping away, taking shot after shot of the magnificent bird. It didn’t like how long we were watching it, and took off while I continued to take pictures.

Ecstatic with what we had seen, I quickly uploaded the photos to the group I’m in asking if I was correct with what I thought.

Many people chimed in right away to let me know that, even though they were great pictures, the bird in the photos was actually just a Red-Tailed Hawk.

RTH’s, as their name is abbreviated, are the most abundant hawks in North America, and are also the most easily mistaken for another raptor. The specific bird I had seen was a large, dark-morph female, meaning her plumage was a much darker brown than most buteo’s.

The thrill of going out birding was something my heart craved so heavily the more and more I did it. I’d get so excited to come home and look through my pictures, trying to see if I caught any new species and if I could figure out what its name was. It felt a lot like Pokémon and filling up my Pokédex. ☺️

The field guides weren’t enough, I wanted to know more. I now had a better understanding of the seasons, and knew I had to wait out the summer until I’d see the next migration. I bought two books off of Amazon: a cute little yellow book called “Birdpedia” that has hundreds of quick facts about all things avian lore, and a novel/memoir called “H is for Hawk” by Helen Macdonald.

Helen’s book would launch me into a reading craze like I’ve never felt before, buying bird book after bird book, reading them within a few weeks and moving on to another. I had never been one to read very much (not unless you count manga), so to feel myself still craving more words was a very new feeling. Here’s a list of a few more books I’d recommend if you’re interested, they’re my favorites:

‘Bird Brother’ by Rodney Stotts. Very relatable slice of life from a person who never thought he’d write a book, or own raptors.

‘The Falcon Thief’ by Joshua Hammer. True crime novel meets bird study in this gripping story about a detective who’s after a man wanted for stealing endangered eggs.

‘Red-Tails in Love’ by Marie Winn. You gotta really like birds and reading to get through this one; a woman’s true account of her observations in New York’s Central Park, along with the other birders who accompany her.

Including all of my field guides (mostly local but I have one about Japan!), I’ve read 16 books that have something to do with falconry. My brain is truly stuffed with bird lore. Upon making the poll about this bedtime story, two of you asked me to tell you a bird fact. 🤭 Here’s what I told them, my go-to bird fact:

All avian species had many goals during their evolutionary periods, but nothing like their need to be more aerodynamic. Their quest to be lighter led them to lose a few organs over time that mammals couldn’t imagine living without, including the bladder! That is why it seems like birds poop completely at random, it is truly because they have no way to hold it.

Second special fun fact, people always ask me, “What’s your favorite kind of bird?!” and that’s a hard one because I love all of them so much, but I like to say it’s the Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher since I can almost perfectly mimic their mating call. 😋

Over several months, I added more equipment to my build. I got a Sigma AF 600mm lens, as well as a teleconverter, a small attachment that goes between the camera and the lens to double the distance of whatever you’re shooting. Now I was able shoot 1200mm! I could see the blood on the beak of a hawk from half a mile away.

Birding trips would take me and Jamie all across California, going to every state park and wildlife reserve we could to see what kinds of birds were there. We’d bring picnic lunches and listen to music before starting our hikes. Eventually I bought a second Nikon off of some lady that I met up with in a Five Bellow parking lot, wanting to have a second camera for landscape shots.

I still love going out and taking pictures, though the newbie excitement I used to feel has since died down. The joy of closing your eyes and taking a deep breath of fresh air as you listen to all the birds around you is a peace I would want anyone to feel. It’s my favorite way to exist.

I know this one was a bit of a boring read this time, so as a reward for getting through it, here’s some of the pictures that I’m most proud of 🥰 Please note, they all have been cropped to remove my artist’s signature:

The photo of the Western Bluebird pair from my first ever outing.

2. Red-winged Blackbird. Proof that the 200mm lens can absolutely get you a good shot if the subject is close enough. This guy landed on a branch less than 10 feet away from me.

3. Cedar Waxwings. If you’re familiar with these regal-looking birds, then you can probably hear how loud this photo is 🤭

4. White-faced Ibis. One of the first shots I had taken with my 300mm lens.

5. Red-shouldered Hawk. A sub-species of the RTH, this RSH is seen covered in dew on a cold, early January morning. 600mm.

6. And finally, my favorite picture that I’ve ever taken, this is a first summer Pygmy Nuthatch, seen here with a beak full of grubs that it was bringing back to it’s siblings in the nest. 1200mm.

That’s the end of our story. Thank you so much for reading ❤️ Please let Momma about what you think of the story and the pictures. 🤭

Sweet dreams 💋 xoxo

~'*•.¸♡¸.•*'.・。゜✭・.・✫・。.'*•.¸♡¸.•*'~

#rosebtstory #enjoy my puppies 💋

[27dragons]

The Sheer Gall

Content warning: Medical adventures. They're not graphic, but if you're particularly squeamish, be warned. Also a solid wall of text, so I'm dropping most of it behind a readmore. Basically, this is a rundown of my past week...

.

Last Monday evening, I popped a fever. Not a bad one, never even got all the way up to 102F (38.8C). It broke overnight, and I woke up on Tuesday with only a low-grade that eased back down to normal by lunchtime.

Tuesday evening, I developed a mild pain that ran along the bottom of my right ribcage. That was weird, but it was basically a mirror of the spot where I feel the pain when my heartburn/ulcer nonsense kicks up, but less painful, so I figured it was some weird gas or something and went to bed, figuring it would resolve by morning.

It did not resolve by morning. By Wednesday afternoon, I was weirded out enough by this mild but persistent pain go to the UrgentCare clinic and see what they had to say. What they had to say was: probably a gallstone, though because of the way UrgentCare and insurance in this country works, they couldn't order the ultrasound that was needed to be certain. But the pain was mild and my temperature was fine, so the UC doc said, "Call your primary doc as soon as you get home and make an appointment to arrange for an ultrasound. If the pain gets worse or you spike a fever, go to the Emergency Room."

Less than an hour after I got home, I started shivering. I checked and -- yep, low-grade fever. I wasn't sure that counted, so I went and curled up in bed (to warm up a bit) and took my temp every fifteen minutes or so, watching the number on the thermometer readout slowly climb. When it hit 100.1F (37.7C) (still technically lowgrade but high enough that I was pretty sure it would keep going up) I packed myself a bag and drove to the ER.

It had gone back down to just BARELY over normal by the time I got there, which made me think they were probably going to just confirm that it was still early stages, not a problem yet, and send me home again. The ER ordered an ultrasound, and eventually the ER doc came and told me it was definitely gallstones but it didn't look urgent enough to operate that night, so they were probably going to send me home with instructions to contact the surgical center in the morning to make an appointment, pretty much like I thought. He was just waiting to confirm that with the surgeon on duty. Half an hour later, the surgeon on duty came into my room and said, "The Thursday operating schedule is already completely booked, so we're going to jump the queue by scheduling you before all the other surgeries, at 7:00." Basically, he agreed that it wasn't enough of an emergency to operate immediately, but it was urgent enough that he didn't want to wait until Friday.

So they admitted me to the hospital proper at about 10pm, and moved me up to the surgical ward. It was very early Thursday morning by the time the nurse had finished collecting information and setting me up with an antibiotic drip while I texted my family and boss to let them know what was going on. At about 4am, they started prepping me for the surgery, and five or so hours after that, I woke up in Recovery.

I spent most of Thursday groggy and trying to figure out how to move when my abdominal muscles had decided to take some time off. My dad drove up to sit with me for a few hours, and that evening the Ex brought the Things to see me. That evening, the night nurse made me get out of bed and take a few laps around the ward, which I didn't want to do (and I stubbed my little toe on the base of the IV pole like five times) but did help enormously with the weird gas pressure and bloating left over from the surgery.

The surgeon woke me up at about 6:30 Friday morning to show me a bunch of pictures he'd taken of the inside of my body, go over the points of the surgery with me, give me my post-surgical restrictions and instructions, and tell me he would leave discharge orders in the computer for me when I was ready to go. I was back home by lunchtime, and honestly it only took that long because they have a policy that you can't drive yourself home from the hospital, so I had to arrange for my sister-in-law to come pick me up. (My brother and dad coordinated retrieving my car from the ER parking lot that afternoon.)

I could tell a bunch more anecdotes about things that happened in the hospital -- conversations I had with the various nurses, misadventures with my IV, overlapping but unrelated other medical/body issues, my selection of TV to watch, and the delusional patient in the room two down from mine -- but here's the thing I want you guys to remember, most of all:

The only initial warnings I got were an intermittent low fever and mild but persistent pain. That's it. If I hadn't been weirded out by the persistence of the minimal pain, my gall bladder might well have ruptured a day or so later and left me with a much worse problem to deal with.

Pay attention to your bodies, guys. It will tell you when something's wrong... but it may not be speaking very loudly.

#my boring life #about me #medical problems and care #pique queue

[moyokeansimblr]

I uh...might have done a thing. 😮

Yesterday I went downloading for like 7 hours... I went through the poppet hairs tumblr all the way as far back until before v2 was made and opened tabs of every creator there was and downloaded 1000+ alpha hairs in poppet v2 textures/colors. Then today after weeding through and deleting anything I didn't actually like and/or duplicates I've ended up with 658 different hairstyles. 👍

Why did I do this? Well, three primary sources are to blame. 😆

how freakin hot acottonsock's ajay loner is (this is actually the catalyst)

keoni's gameplay pics

kayleigh-83's gameplay pics

But also I've always kinda wanted to try poppet hairs 🤔 in fact I did try this exact thing a few weeks ago but my download sample didn't convince me so I kept using clay. Then platasp released her defaults which tbh I feel a little bad about giving up on already but I've been losing interest in clay for a while now I think actually. the defaults gave them a bit more life but I'm not quite so sure atm.

Back in the day when I used more realistic cc my primary hair system was pooklet/io/digi etc but back then I also downloaded anything and everything. When I first switched to maxis match I started with NHS but at the time there wasn't enough styles in it for an addict like myself and I ended up switching to simgaroop. Then I switched to using only clay hairs in eaxis colors. But I've always kinda liked poppet's colors and wanted to give them a shot. I haven't downloaded any defaults yet (although I know rudhira and loosiap will have me set) because I just wanted to focus on custom to start.

I haven't yet put them in my main game so everyone in Strangetown still has their clay hairs atm (and obviously will for the rest of what's currently in my queue) but my plan is to make a backup of the hood and label it clay and then go in and give everyone new hairs and see how I feel. In the meantime, here's my fav cc model Ben with kewai-dou levi. It's the only hair I specifically searched for by name to make certain I had because it's been my favorite alpha hairstyle for years idk what it is about it but I needed to make sure I had it if nothing else.

So yeah... I guess new cc hair aesthetic just in time for 2024? I'll still be keeping all 500+ clay hairs in a backup so I can answer any wcifs and obviously in case I've made a terrible mistake and wanna switch back 😂

#moyokean #i don't even know what to tag this #i've been very busy the last two days #making a mental note to update my cc resources page #idk what i'm doing

[aeon-arts]

Starlight Glimmer (Re) Redesign!

Info under the cut! 

So I uh. Revamped a lot LMAO. So this Starlight is almost the exact same as canon Starlight. Let’s talk about what I altered! As mentioned in my Sunburst design, Sunburst had sent her letters after he was all but dragged into magic school. However, the letters never make it. This thus creates a rift between them with the other thinking they weren’t friends anymore.

This leads to Starlight throwing herself into her studies so she can go to the school and one-up Sunburst. However, her emotions are highly tied to her magic (canon) so every time she attempts to apply, she messes up and is thus denied. At the last attempt, she is SO close to succeeding and grabbing the final open spot, but a certain purple unicorn steps in and steals the spot! Queue an early hatred for Twilight LMAO.

This leads her to her canon thought process that cutie marks were what stole her friend from her and she goes to her Village and steals everyone’s cutie marks with the promise that things are better this way. Instead of the equal sign, I changed it to them all being blank flanks. (The villagers don’t question why Starlight doesn’t have a cutie mark because it is rare for adults to not have a cutie mark, thus making them believe her lie about getting rid of her cutie mark). Same as canon that she takes the Mane 6′s cutie marks and escapes into the mountains once it’s revealed she lied. 

Like canon, she follows the Mane 6 around to find a weak spot. At one point, they go to the Crystal Empire for a friendship problem. They convince Sunburst to help them. Unbeknownst to them, they were followed by Starlight Glimmer. She witnesses how he’s grown and watches him open up and make new friends of the Mane 6. He even asks if he could join them on their quest to bring friendship to all. Starlight notes that Twi and Sun are particularly close. This enrages Starlight and is the final push for her to devise a plan to destroy the Mane 6. 

As for how she tries to destroy them, I’d think it would be close to canon. A slight change would be how Twilight asks her why she doesn’t just go back and talk to Sunburst. Starlight tells her it’s because she wants to ruin Twilight’s life just like she did when her and Sunburst became friends and how cutie marks/magic ruined her friendship with Sunburst. Twilight tells her that Sunburst mourns their lost friendship and reveals the letters that never made it to her. Feeling foolish, she undos the spell and disappears (instead of immediately being redeemed).

What happens to get her redeemed fully, I’m not sure. I’d like to think Starlight meets Trixie and the two hit it off (though Starlight won’t easily call them friends just yet to avoid heartbreak). She brings out the good in Trixie, though they can both be...a little morally gray. Twilight sees this and convinces Starlight to give friendship another try. Starlight says she’s not sure she remembers how after so long, thus leading her to becoming Twi’s student. Her reward once she solves her first friendship problem is a bracelet made by the Mane 6.

She does not get her cutie mark until post-redemption. After finding a new focus on friendship and her kite hobby, she gets her cutie mark (which is essentially her canon mark turned into a kite lmao). Her stars on her body also grow in number. Lastly, as a final part of her healing process, she regrows her unicorn beard and lets her mane and tail grow out. She also embraces some of her “imperfect” aspects and letting them shine through!

yes you can draw this design! just @ me to give me credit!

#mlp #starlight glimmer #MLP redesign #mlp starlight glimmer #mlp fim starlight glimmer #my redesign #my edit #my art

[poupeesdecirque]

Posting by Queue, or: why I need some distance from my crafts

It has been some time since my last hobby meta blog entry, it had different reasons and one is that I need distance. Like, yes I of course enjoy crafting and sometimes I am like a little child that runs everywhere to show off things.

But it got ... less intense. And I learned I do better when I keep projects or at least details to myself to sit on them for longer. That the first euphoria is purely mine and not to be shared.

Like for my photos I have a buffer of several weeks now. Yes, I know past-me would have kind of hated that. But I learned I do better when I have a time buffer. I do take photos weekly but sometimes they don't feel special enough to get the weekly photo feature?

Friday & yesterday I went out for photos and while I like the ones from yesterday way more than the ones from friday I am not sure if the set from yesterday will get the feature or not as it's only a hand full of photos giving me that certain spark.

Other than that I am a very emotional artist, I sometimes really fuck up my art and hate it at the moment I worked on it, but then, sometimes, after a few days or weeks I can look at it and just wonder about what was my problem the day I made it.

Another thing is that I, myself, enjoy my art. The process of it. And I like to see my blog updating, sometimes I forget what post will go online and then I check the blog and think "ah yes, this was that thing!", and it reminds me why I made the blog overall, to show myself I had progress and that every tiny step counts.

Which leads to another reason why I hold back in regards of posting. Yes, I do share some snippets in my stories over on insta but not always and not all. I sit on over 300 drawings from the last two years alone nobody ever will see, I enjoyed drawing but it's nothing for the public eye. I will maybe go back and redraw some and share the redraws then, who knows?

But wait, there is actually more reasons.

The biggest or main reason is ... i sometimes go really wild on projects. In January I finished so many dolls it was insane, I worked on Cosplays and other crafts in an incredible speed, I have literally no idea where I found the time but I somehow did and doll parts arriving every week did the rest.

I keep the blog running with partially 2 month old stuff but .... to be honest I don't have doll stuff aside photos to do anymore. All I can do is wait for bodies to be shipped (or dolls even) and arrive. There has been no movement since January. Aside Iza getting the shipping notice for our Split, might take a while until its at her place and I can't really start on the Akuma until I got the body (which I at least have finally ordered this month) as colors need to be matched and mods to be made.

I am truly itchy to do something else than sewing all the time, I do enjoy cosplay but you know how much I like sewing (hint: not at all). So to remind myself of the fun I had in the past weeks I have mixed my blog to bless me with some progress I had which was maybe not sewing all the time. And well, the Cosplays have deadlines and I do get some ideas aside purely sewing while doing them, so that keeps me going for now.

Yes, I could start redoing dolls like Alastor or Erwin. But you know what? IT'S ALMOST ALL SEWING. Urgh.

Aside that real life is pretty good at eating me up and I just want to enjoy crafting. Right now drawing feels like stress relief but I hate the results and just scan the pieces and put them away to never look at them again, I have a bunch of posts queued up without any captions, a wip entry of a current project only has two photos but I lack the spoons to actually get them done. But since those posts are so far back it's fine (yes I know drafts are a thing).

In general I enjoy having my art to myself to get used to it before I put it out into the wild as I just recently got reminded I do bad with direct comparisons still and it hits some triggerpoints from the past and makes everything harder, I don't need that.

I literally have no idea if this blog makes sense even, lol. I just am tired of sewing and stopped working on my current project around lunch time and have drawn so much today and I walked way too much the whole week my friends urged me to stay the ef home and at least try to relax. But I'm restless as my body is too stressed (I know it all I'm a certified relaxation trainer so eh), so, have an over the place blog entry.

#blog #hobby meta #or something like that #idk

[daykinking]

Intro Post

🕐if im posting before noon PST its a queue

if you get off to my pics/videos consider thanking me through cashapp $squigglefish 💕

❌no anorexia anything❌

x I don't rp, sorry :C but feel free to use my posts as rp inspo

Hi, welcome to my super secret fet blog. Below the cut I will describe what this is for and who I am.

✅ AI scraping is turned OFF for this blog! Your art is safe.

‼health and safety disclaimer: this is a blog rooted in sexual fantasy. claimed levels of alcohol consumption by OP may at times be greatly exaggerated or otherwise unsafe to imitate. original characters posted on this blog are fictional and can consume lethal amounts of alcohol because they're not real. please do your own research on the real-world dangers of alcohol poisoning and drink responsibly.

Who am I?

You can call me Vee. I'm around 30, transmasc and I use he/it pronouns. I live in the USA on the west coast. I have a main tumblr but I don't feel comfortable attaching this kink to my identity. So it's our little secret.

What's my fetish?

Well, I've known for easily over a decade that I have an intoxication fetish. >////> Specifically, regarding alcohol. Other forms of intoxication don't compare.

What will I be posting?

Hopefully art, at some point. I have several OC's and a fantastical setting that I've been daydreaming about for a while, and I'd like to introduce them to other like-minded people. Other than that, I may post about getting stoned. While weed intoxication doesn't turn me on, I really enjoy it, lol.

More Fetish Details

It's taken me until literally this year to explore the intox fetish tag because literally I'm so humiliated I have this fetish that I can't even let the dust motes in the room see what I'm looking up. Furthermore, I've followed and unfollowed the tag on my main blog because a lot of it misses the mark for me. For example, forced intox makes me a little uncomfortable, and while I'm not opposed to CNC it's really hit or miss for me.

While I enjoy being drunk myself, I'm more turned on by watching/imagining others being drunk. Currently I'm trying to be (California) sober as well, so you likely won't get a lot of posts of me being drunk, but we'll see. I do love an IPA.

Some specific things that turn me on in regards to alcohol fetishism are:

gluttony (for alcohol mainly, but also weed, food, sex)

drinking from the bottle

finishing other peoples' leftover drinks

hiccupping

blushing/red/sweaty face

unfocused/half-closed eyes

swaying, stumbling, falling over, especially while sitting or standing in place

showing tits/sucking dick/etc. in exchange for alcohol

being/getting drunk in an inappropriate place (in church, on break at work, etc.)

accidental drunkenness

daydrinking, the earlier in the day the hotter

waking up extremely drunk

pissing self from being so drunk

pissing while actively taking a drink

losing ability to walk

losing ability to speak

falling over while actively taking a drink

alcohol causing breast expansion (also belly and butt, but primarily breasts)

anime intoxication indicators (slanting blush strokes, wobbly mouth, tears on corners of eyes, bubbles and swirls popping around their head)

CNC on a technicality because having sex with someone that's fucked up is automatically NC

feeding/gaining as long as copious amounts of alcohol are also involved

Squicks

These are things that put me off for whatever reason. While I don't judge people who are into these things, if you post about them, I'm likely not to follow back.

scat

diaper play

MAP/NOMAP (i do judge this one)

gore

cops

real/realistic incest play (fauxcest doesn't trigger the same response)

nonconsent

certain drug use (meth/heroin, permutations thereof, any sort of pill abuse)

forced intoxication (case by case)

While this blog is about my alcohol/ism fetish, there are a few things I'd be willing to engage with on here through asks and post interactions. I smoke weed every day and I'm up to sharing photos and videos related to that, however faceless. Sometimes I do whippits as well and I can post about that here if it turns people on. While I don't have a foot fetish myself, I have very cute feet, to whom it may concern.

Most other drugs I don't do. While I have done coke, acid, and mushrooms (not all at the same time), I don't prefer them. I do like molly (duh who doesn't) but don't have a reliable dealer atm, also it tanks my mental health. I have never done any drugs other than the ones I've mentioned and don't have any desire to partake in them.

If you suspect that you know me, no you don't! I can't impress enough that I really do not want my blogs to be associated with each other. There is a chance that over time some people could recognize me from years past, when I did publicly incorporate this kink into fan art and fanfiction. To those people...hey :) please don't out me.

Um that's all I have to say I guess! Until I decide to update this post.

#pinned #about me #intox kink #alcohol intox #dumbification #txt

[msfcatlover]

You’re all going to be seeing these back to back (thank you queue,) but I wrote the Star Sapphire Damian post last week and have been doing more research on the corps. And honestly, I like it even better now?

First of all, ever since I found out how Lantern rings work (that is, being drawn towards the entities most filled with/fueled by/capable of inspiring the emotion the ring represents,) I’ve been really curious about what happens if someone doesn’t agree with the main philosophy of the corps, but the ring was drawn to them anyway. Because the Green Lantern ring only cares about strength of willpower, but the Green Lantern Corps is a political faction with its own rules, principles, etc. What if someone had one of the strongest wills in the multiverse but when they find out about all the other stuff they’re just like, “Nah. I’m good.”  …I mean, in the case of the Green Lanterns, I’m sure they all team up to take that person down and take back the ring. But literally what is stopping the ring from just flying back to that person? Or one of the other rings just flying about? And some of the other corps seem to place a much higher value on their core emotion than the rules they have in place, so would they let that person keep a ring that had decided that person was worthy even if that person wouldn’t follow their rules? (I am 100% certain this has been addressed in the comics at some point, but I don’t know where to even start to look for it.)

What I’m saying is: Damian doesn’t have to agree with the Star Sapphires’ policies as an organization to get the powers. Which is good, because Damian definitely would not be down for the whole brainwash-recruitment strategy. But he is still full of love & loss, he’s still driven by it, he’s still willing to make huge sacrifices for the sake of those he loves (case in point: as far as Damian’s concerned, none of his family even know he exists at this point in time, and by pursuing such a dramatically different path Damian can never recover even a facsimile of those relationships—the context is just too different, there’s no way they’ll ever see/treat him the same way they did before.) (Which is just some delicious dramatic irony. Especially because I get to reward Damian with people who did live through many of those things with him, and who care about him & understand him the very way he thought he was giving up forever. Much more damaged, scarred, and emotionally shredded versions of those people, but those people all the same. Who will be just as happy to see Damian as he is to see them, because each & every one of them lost him before and probably thought they had again when they found out the League was burning & Damian was fully MIA.)

BACK ON TOPIC! Damian is filled with love & loss, and could absolutely draw in a Violet Lantern ring. And the Sapphires seem to be one of those corps who care more about the purity & power of the emotion felt rather than the rules they follow, so there is a solid argument for them letting him keep it. And it would give Damian the equipment to personally stop the invasion, because he could force the generic Evil Alien Overlord to experience all the pain they made Damian go through. Not in a brainwashy way, but more in a, “Let me help you make a more informed decision by showing you what you actually do to people in your quest for conquest. Let’s see if you still want to pursue the same path after witnessing the other side,” sort of way. (Is that more of a compassion thing? Yeah, but you can’t tell me the Sapphires can force feelings of love into people to bend their wills and not expect me to believe they can make them feel other emotions tied to love, especially when having loved & lost is one of the things the rings prioritize.)

This requires me to make the non-green Lantern corps a much longer-standing thing than they canonically are, but fuck it, that’s a retcon that should’ve been made long ago; it does not make sense for the Green Lanterns to be this centuries-old organization and all the other (supposedly equally powerful & important) emotions only getting rings & corps in the most modern last few years.  Plus, it means Earth’s primary Violet Lantern would be a very, very small child, and I think that’s hilarious. He’s gonna adopt Dex-Starr, and then they’ll both make Hal Jordon look like somehow the least competent Earth representative.

#How much of this ends up in the story? Idk #but #I’m having so much fun #// #iwctw (time travel) #time travel fixit #damian wayne #damian al ghul #dc lanterns #star sapphire #violet lantern #star sapphire Damian wayne #Violet lantern Damian wayne #batfam #batfamily #bat fam #bat family #Batman #my writing #mine

[burning-academia-if]

Hello! I love the premise of your IF, and your writing is spectacular (Rook's backstory has me in SHAMBLES you don't understand) and I'm super excited for the next update, whenever that will be! On that note, I've got a question about making and promoting your own IF. I have my an idea that I've been working on, and I want to one day release my own IF with it, but I'm not sure how I would go about promoting it - I don't have a lot of time for writing, so I'm worried that I won't really be able to get it out there because I just don't post very often. How did you promote Burning Academia when you first got started? Do you have any tips for beginners like myself?

Thanks in advance!

Firstly, thanks for playing! Secondly, I'm not sure I'm the best person to ask about marketing since tumblr/the IF community ultimately did 99% of the work lol. With that being said though, here's some general advice!

Take time on your intro post. This is everyone's first introduction to your IF, and it's what net me most of my followers in the beginning. While there's a general layout to IF intros, I personally still went back and looked through all the IFs I follow to see what bits and bobs I wanted to add and what I didn't.

Be honest. If making an IF is a hobby or you don't have time, you can add a disclaimer if you want. Honestly, I think it's less about frequency and more about consistency. Pick a day where you have some time and answer asks, and don't feel pressured to answer every ask, especially if you're busy.

Also, be clear about the kinds of asks you will and won't answer. This is less a marketing thing and more for your own sake kind of thing lol. If you don't have a lot time to write the IF, then you certainly don't have the time to write prompts/scenarios.

Anyway, if you are worried about frequency of posting, set up a queue! Fill it with art/quotes/photos and tag them as inspo/aesthetic/characters/etc. This way the blog is still 'active' without you needing to be present all the time.

Circling back to the intro post: tag it properly. I jam packed mine with every tag I could think of, and I think that's part of why it got around so quickly (as well as the major IF blogs reblogging it as well).

While I'm not sure what you're thinking of using (Twine/Choicescript/Ink/etc), you'll have different options on how to market. For example, choicescript has their own forums where you can post a thread for your WIP or Itch.io has devlogs. Use them. While I don't update frequently on my itch, I do like to cross post certain things (the 1k follower short stories, for example, I put on itch. Updates are an obvious one). I pretty much copy and paste from tumblr to itch, just so people who don't follow my tumblr are informed to what's going on. I personally only use tumblr for BA, so if you wanted to try other social media then obviously do some research. I personally wouldn't use more then 2 socials max though, because it can get pretty overwhelming.

Finally, be part of the community! I know I'm personally not the best at this due to my own online anxieties lol, but just reblogging things your interested in and supporting others is always appreciated! I know this sounds obvious but after lurking in the IF community for years and being in the VN world, you'd be surprised by how many people just...don't?? Anyway, I personally love when other writers show excitement for other IFs, so I like to express that, too. It's also just giving back to the community you're a part of.

#em answers #em advice #off topic #sorry if this is a rant/nonsense/obvious lmfaO #I know some people go hard on marketing but I'm personally just here and chilling and enjoying myself afdskalfj #hopefully there was something useful in there! I know different things work for different people as well!

[xaz-fr]

Afamiliars beware

since I’m banned I don’t really care anymore. Buckle up, its long and I’m not gonna put it under a read more because :))) these girls have broken my spirit for the last time.

If you’ve ever seen a community around called Afamiliar: don’t join it :)))

For those who don’t know what Afams is. Its where you can order a little drawing of a familiar from FR and it comes with unique colors and markings and can dress it up, breed, it and scavenge with it. Artists make them in a queue and fill orders as they come in.*

The admins are INCREDIBLY toxic. They can’t take any sort of criticism and they play favorites with who and how people get punished. You aren’t even allowed to say you’re unhappy about anything. Ever. Or if you do you get a strike. If you call out the team or admin’s hypocritical behavior you get a strike. If you stand up for yourself when the admins are clearly doing these things you get a strike.

I was part of Afamiliars for two years and was part of the team for a year and during that time I watched the entire thing fall apart. They really try to make it seem like they’re one big family but its just not true. The admins and owners Myndris and Sketchanie are both pretty toxic and talk about people, members of their community and their staff of artists and other team members, behind their back and make snide comments about them constantly. And while everyone else is held accountable to the rules neither of them or their friends are. Myndris talked so much shit about someone she had the entire team convinced they were a terrible person just because they didn’t like some art they got. The best part is when the admins agree with you about things you have problems with in Afamiliars in private over DMs and then publicly renounce everything you say. So hypocritical AND completely two faced. My absolute favorite :)

I was fired from my position as artist in July because another team member antagonized me into telling them to shut the fuck up because I wanted to be able to have open dialogues about the actual stuff that was bothering me. I ended up leaving for a week I was so furious at the state of things and why the admin team had such shitty conflict resolution. No negativity. Nothing in any way could be perceived as negative or you got a strike, so long as you weren’t a friend of the Admins. If you were they’d just tell you to stop. It was full on ‘no war in Ba Sing Sa’ in the Afams server and still is. Which is why I left and then for a week not a single member of staff reached out to me to see if I was okay. In fact after I left the community noticed and they started deleting messages asking what happened and where I was and where I’d gone and why I’d left.  Their most prolific artist had just LEFT and the only way they thought to respond was to delete every message that asked what happened. :)))) They also lied to the team about how many strikes I had and my ‘behavior issues’ to convince them to vote me out. Which is hilarious bc there are way worse actors in the team than me.

But saying anything that might be slightly confrontational got you a warning or a strike. So it was literally impossible to have any sort of adult conversations that might make people upset. Things that had been bothering me for seven months. Things the admins agreed with and refused to do anything about. They just let it sit. And stew. Agreeing with all the problems you have with X thing in private while publicly acting like it wasn’t a problem at all.

They also don’t listen to feedback like... at all. I’m not expecting anyone to be perfect and I know we’re all only human but they keep making the same comedy of errors again. And again. And again. To the point that now they’re two most popular artists are either gone, or about to be gone. They’d been given feedback from multiple people multiple times about how a trial mod on the team makes certain people uncomfortable and instead of removing that person they doubled down on them and did not remove them. And then when people went to other admins about the problem THAT WAS SHARED with the person in question. Admin specific information saying how people were uncomfortable with someone with that person. Probably with their name attached. When I brought THAT to an admin again nothing was done.

In the past few months I’ve just watched the team and the server completely fucking implode. The admins doubling down on zero negativity even as more and more people realize... something isn’t right. More people, people I don’t even talk to!, mention things that are a bit more aggressive than the admins would like. Someone even got muted on the server for telling a mod that an admin had dealt with the problem and the mod was then continuing to antagonize the original problem; which is against the rules. Someone got harassed over DMs by another member, asked where they could submit a report and posted proof of it, and they were the one given the strike and told that the admins do not moderate DMs. But they do sometimes feel the need to moderate and condone certain discord servers run by people they don’t like :) Which is a true thing.

In the past week the second most prolific artist left because one of the admins called the afams everyone makes ‘a miserable pile of pixels’ in reference to how much drama they get in the server and feedback form. This obviously upset some people and so said artist is taking a break for a month. I know she’s not a fool. She also sees what’s happening. She might go back but I doubt it and I hope she’s much less stressed out whatever she chooses to do. Then another artist stepped down the next day. Then just today a third artist stepped down, both of which were admins. So within a week 3 artists felt the need to step down to focus on themselves and mental health issues.

I’ve never attacked any of these people by the way except when they say shit about me that is categorically untrue. Or they show up trying to bully me. Which they also do. I was friends with all these people in the team while I was on the team until one day they just decided I wasn’t :) Not allowed to be friends with the admins anymore if you call them out on their hypocrisy.

And then today they finally banned me from the server. Which I wasn’t really a part of anyway and didn’t participate in much. And people have said worse and done worse to the team and admins but because I’m the designated server villain everything I do is worse.

This is why I was banned

from the latest admin artist that stepped down after giving their message they were stepping down. And I said ‘that seems pretty call-outy and overly negative to me’ which is... against all the rules on the server. But I’m the villain. So I’m not allowed to point it out.

The other admin said this to me pointing out that THIS ADMIN was breaking the site rules

Even tho I’ve legit gotten a strike just for saying ‘I don’t like this thing you’ve done. I’m not gonna talk about it but I want you to know I don’t like this decision you’ve made’.  And these rules also exist in the team only area and it says that  NO ONE is exempt. And I said as much. Because that’s bullshit.

At least unless you’re the owner’s wife. Than you can do whaaaatever you want :)

But yeah. Fuck Afamiliars. I’ve seen the writing on the wall for the past year. They’re gonna implode, or explode, and the admins are gonna be busy finger pointing at everyone but themselves for the problems. In Sketch’s stepping down message she said this exactly

I understand there have been many fuck ups on our end, and I apologize for those, but we have always strived to learn from those mistakes. And I'd like to think that we do a little better each time. 

Which is not what I’ve seen the past few months. Instead they’ve doubled down on Being Right at all costs, not listening to community feedback, lashing out at people who call them out on their bullshit and hypocrisy and I know they still talk shit about their community members in DMs with their stooges.

It’s been a BEAUTIFUL fireball to watch the past 3 months since I was fired.

*Lots of artists don’t actually fill their orders. They just let their queues fill up into huge ribbons on trello and then once a month maybe fill 1-4 orders. One artist has been around 10 months and made so little art their orders can’t even fill 4 pages on discord search. So you’re stuck waiting months, or sometimes YEARS, for a project you want to fill. A friend of mine just gave up on a project because they’d been waiting two and a half years. But the queues on all artists except for maybe... idk, 3-4 artists (including me at the time) were so slow you would be waiting and waiting and legitimately no progress was made. There used to be a rule of 1 afam a week to keep queues moving but sometime around the time Sketch decided to stop making afams that rule was quietly removed.

#flight rising #afamiliars

[bogusboxed]

Boxtober - Day 7: "What's Your Favorite Scary Movie?"

Day 7: -Brian Thomas X GN!Reader “Check that again, are you sure?” x "Movie Marathon"

-I do not own "Brian Thomas" and do not take credit for him.

-

You had been cuddled against Brian’s side as you both went on a movie marathon. It’d been a few hours since it started, and you two had no plans to quit. Both of you were extremely comfortable, and you were determined to finish the last few movies in the queue. The TV screen was the only thing that emitted light in your shared house. As its lights rapidly change color every so often, they constantly flicker whenever something intriguing happens. They made your eyes hurt, but you couldn't manage to focus your gaze anywhere else. Okay, maybe your eyes darted between the screen and Brian a few times, but other than that, you were glued to the screen.

You could occasionally feel Brian’s grip on you tighten whenever a more gruesome scene took place. Brian ensured you that he was there for comfort if you needed a second from the screen. He always felt you had a weak stomach. Which was/wasn't true, but either way, he protected you. Like now, he had his arm behind your back with his hand lazily resting on your waist, ready to pull you in whenever he felt it was right. You tried to ignore him to focus more on the movie, but your partner always found a way to distract you from the blaring screen. Not that you minded. You liked having to hear his commentary or answer a random question he asked you about. You enjoyed watching these movies for hours, especially with your boyfriend. And currently, you two are watching the first Scream movie. You both picked at the clichés that were intentionally sprinkled throughout the movie. Even if it was a horror movie, you both still found a comedy angle in it thanks to Brian.

"I don’t get why you like this movie so much." Brian shifted comfortably, making sure he wouldn't mess with you too much. "Because it's a slasher classic, "you squinted at him for even attempting to attack any of the slasher movies. He looked down at you, having the corners of his mouth twitch into an unwanted smile. He sighed as he sat patiently waiting for the climax of the movie to arrive. You both already knew the ending and how the story would progress. But, it didn’t stop you from enjoying the film. "And now,'' She's dead," you called it out, as one of the murderers killed one of the characters. Her scream was fake as she flopped to the ground, staining her clothes in an unnaturally bright red. Brian sighed as he listened to you go on with your slasher theories and callouts. He really liked hearing what you had to say about the movies. It's probably why he loved watching them with you so much.

The show began to show its filler scenes, more commonly known as their duller and more boring scenes. You both became bored, and the boredom was making you both tired. And to distract you from that, Brian sent you on a side quest mid-movie. "Hey Reader, could you go make us some popcorn please?" He smiled at you as he loosened his grip, letting go completely. You looked away from the movie screen and at him. Your side felt weird as it had already gotten used to the sensation of his hand. You said, "Yeah, sure," as you scooted off the couch, leaving your warm spot vacant. You stood up and became dizzy from watching that screen all day. You walked your way cautiously through the dark house, patting down unfamiliar territory. As you finally made your way to the kitchen with some trial and error.

You switched on the kitchen lights desperately to see something clearly without having to solely rely on instinct. The kitchen lights lit the entire room with no warning, blaring into your eyes, which had gotten used to the dark. You blinked your eyes rapidly to adjust to the sudden light. You grudgingly forced yourself into the kitchen, going toward the cabinet you knew featured the popcorn you needed. You crouched next to a certain brown cabinet as you swung its door open slowly. You were met with various snacks and boxes. And with the plethora of snacks, you still managed to not need any of them. To find your popcorn box, you moved bags and boxes over to the side. The box had been stuck in the back of the cupboard. You jammed your hand inside the box, grabbing one of the many popcorn bags inside. You then used the counter above the cabinet to pull yourself up. You slowly looked around the kitchen for your shared microwave you bought a few weeks ago. You walked to the microwave, tearing open the plastic with your teeth to reach the brown bag inside. It left a buttery residue on your lips as you opened the microwave. The door sprung open as you tossed the brown bag inside. You shut the door while making sure there wasn't anything else inside. Afterward, you pressed some buttons on your microwave to ensure it would pop in less than four minutes.

When the bag began, you heard a loud and constant ringing come from the landline. You hadn’t used the landline much, only to schedule an appointment or two. Which was shown by the apparent dust gathering on it. But, here it was ringing loudly. You made your way urgently to the phone as you pulled it off of the receiver and placed the cold plastic against your ear. One of your hands cautiously gripped it as you spoke. "Hello?" you muttered to the phone as you still inventively watched the popcorn, which was still rapidly popping. "Hello," a deeper voice said on the other side of the line. "How are you?" the other voice asked you enthusiastically. "Who are you?-’ ‘Do you have the wrong number?"  you asked them assuming they may be calling the wrong person. They paused for a moment, either checking the number or thinking about what to say.  "Oh, sorry I do." the person responded, apologizing quickly. "It’s fine," you reassured the other person. "Bye," you said, returning the positive energy and hanging up the phone. You swore you could've heard them say something else, but it was too late anyway.

After you ended the call, you rushed to your popcorn, which had been popping for a little too long for your liking. As the microwave door sprung open again, steam rushed out of the microwave, relentlessly toasting your face. You then took it quickly out of the microwave, which resulted in a burn on the tip of your finger. "Fuck!" you cursed under your breath as you quickly dropped it onto the counter. You held your hand for a moment before the phone rang again. You aggressively picked it up and answered yet again. "Yes?" you came off a little ruder than you intended. It was just because, you were so annoyed by the little things that keep happening. "Hello," the same voice came back on the speaker. "Is this some sort of prank?" you almost hung up again, feeling a little bad for brushing them off so quickly. But, before you could abruptly hang up, they spoke again. "I just wanted to talk." their voice came off quickly, trying to keep your attention. You sighed heavily, really not wanting to deal with this. "You wanna play a game?’ ‘A game of trivia, unless you were thinking of something else?" their question was direct, yet still open-ended. "I’m really not in the mood right now." you pushed them away again, trying to be polite but letting them know you weren't feeling it.

"Are you with anyone?’ ‘or are you home alone?" they asked directly, completely ignoring your input. As you processed the question, you instantly got a negative vibe. Who was this person and why did they think they had the right to say something like that? The house and the room you were currently in felt wrong. The kitchen felt like it was closing in on you or the roof was going to cave in on you. You felt something in your gut to hang up and go back to Brian, but you didn’t. "Yeah-’ ‘’I'm with someone,' 'I'm not alone." you answered them, inhaling the air which now smelt of buttery popcorn. They didn't have the right or deserved to know, but you weren't going to say no. You didn't trust them, and you did it for your safety. "Is he near?" they were pushing it. You could immediately feel your face tense up. "Yes, he’s in the same room as me.' 'But, I never told you there was someone here." you caught them as you heard them chuckle lightly. "Are you two together?" they asked you another weird question that you didn't feel comfortable answering. "Look I don't know who you are, but these are weird questions to ask someone you don't know." you stood up for yourself. You could hear the heavy breathing on the line and it made you cringe. "Well?" they were persistent and wanted an answer. "We are now, are you done?' 'Please go find someone else to prank." you answered the original question, as you could hear them back from the phone. You should hang up. You really shouldn’t be playing into this person's antics.

"Aw, what a shame.’ ‘You look so nice today." you could feel the frown coming from their side. "What?’ ‘What-’ ‘I’m hanging up,'" you felt fear and adrenaline shoot into your system. How did this person know what you looked like. They pushed it before, but this was too far. The other person creeped you out so much. Why did this person even have a clue about what you looked like? And they were saying that as if they knew who you were. "Wait-’ ‘we still have a game to play-"  they spitted a word out but, you had no intention of doing this. "No, I’m hanging up.’ ‘Don’t call again or I’ll actually call the cops." your finger was right next to the end call before, they snapped out on you.

"Don’t hang up, Reader," they yelled at you firmly as you stopped all movement. How did they know your name? "W-what the fuck?!" you exclaimed. Why did they know your name and why were they doing this to you? Were they watching you right now? Did they have bad intentions for you? You could feel your heart being internally squeezed as your breath quickened. "Let's play a game," they said loudly from the other side. "A game of trivia," they laughed lightly, as you were still frozen up like a deer in headlights. "Why do you know my name?"  you muttered. "I don't think you're the one who's asking the questions." they reminded you who had the upper-hand. Everything going on felt exactly like the movie you were watching minutes before. "Okay, what do you want?" you caved, not knowing what else to do in the situation you were stuck in. "What's your favorite scary movie?" they asked you as you couldn’t manage to think clearly at the moment. They were threatening you moments ago. Why ask such a coy question now? " Uh, um, the one with Michael Myers ’ Halloween!" you managed to give the person an answer as you felt an ounce of tension drift away from you.

"Ooo, I love that! ", "Good choice.' ' Next question, did you lock the front door?" they praised you and then ruined it instantly. Anxiety spiked like never before as you looked around you, fearing to see someone other than, yourself. "Huh? 'What-'What are you talking about?’ ‘Of course it is!" you panicked, as you remembered Brian was the closest to the door. “Check that again, are you sure?” they repeated their previous line again making your stomach turn. “What do you mean-’ ‘It’s my house of course I know if it’s locked or not?’ ‘What are you talking about?” You wanted to hear an affirmation from them. But, the person on the other line hung up suddenly, leaving you with an open-ended question. You dropped the phone to the floor as you raced to the living room. As you got into the silhouette of the living room, you called out for Brian, but you got no response. You felt your soul shatter as you looked for anything of his. You then looked at the front door to see it wide open. You felt your heart drop as you slammed it shut from the whirling winds outside. You panted aggressively against the oak door. You needed to call the cops. But, you felt someone was behind you.

Two hands were soon slammed on either side of your head as you squirmed in your spot, hitting or kicking whatever you could. You saw the two black leather gloves that were keeping you in place while the intruder was pressing on your back. You hit them violently, but they didn’t let up. "What the fuck did you do to Brian?" you yelled angrily as you heard a faint giggle. "I'm right here!" the person behind you hugged you. But, they didn’t sound like Brian. He turned you around but, still pinning you against the door, he caged you within his arms. The man had a black ski mask on with a red frown imprinted on it. You could hear him panting just like he did on the phone.

"Voice changer," he smiled proudly as he pulled off his mask. Brian’s dirty blonde hair flopped onto his face as his hazel eyes glanced at you innocently. As if he hadn’t been missing for an hour. "Brian." you stared him down as he brought you in for a hug. "I was just testing you" he smirked into the crease of your neck. "I was legit about to call the cops," you said, still frozen in fear. "You bitch," you said as you kicked him in the balls to show him how much pain he had caused you. " Fuck-" he shifted uncomfortably, lessening his grip. Your kick had him gasping for air. But even with this attack, he managed to fully support your frame as he chuckled. "You think you’re so funny." you let him absolutely smother you in his touch. "I am," he said as he drew back, gently lowering you to the ground, even though you were only a few inches off the ground. "And your popcorn is now soggy and burnt," you told him as he laughed but gasped, pretending to be upset. You sat down on the couch, sending him to the kitchen to get his popcorn on his own. He cuddled you much harder after that and apologized a good dozen times. For the rest of the night you made him stay by your side and whenever something slightly off happened the both of you went. You were going to get him back for that, but even after that night. You still feel watched.

-

#brian thomas x reader #brian thomas x you #brian thomas x y/n #creepypasta x you #creepypasta x y/n #creepypasta x reader #fictober22 #fluffober #hoodie x you #hoodie x y/n #hoodie x reader

[wolfprincesszola]

The Fate of the Marked Six Chapter 4

I need to start queueing these posts because I keep forgetting until it's late~. I hope you guys enjoy and if you do, please reblog this because it helps a lot more than a like would! <3 ——————– Summary: Virgil moves into a new town and meets Roman, a ghost that he promises to help in finding the unfinished business needed to pass over. However, Roman's past seemed to be deeply muddled with trouble, an uncurable disease that has started to affect a classmate, and a certain tight-lipped valedictorian. Friendships are made and Virgil finds himself thrown into a situation far more complicated and twisted than he signed up. Hopefully, with the help of his new five friends, he can find a way to bring peace to the town once and for all.

Trigger Warnings: None

Content Warnings: Slight swearing, intrusive thoughts

<Masterlist>

<Previous> <Next> ——————–

Chapter 04

The problem with Virgil moving to another city was that he had to be the new kid. He hated being the new kid. It meant having to reintroduce himself to every single person that came to talk to him, and having people stare at him in the hallways, the attention was going to be on him for a while, and more.

That was why he put off going to school for the first week, saying he needed more time to adjust to living in their new home and that he would go in afterwards.

It was the day before his supposed start day for school as he was looking through his closet. He heard a voice, “Knock knock knock.”

“Come in.” Virgil pulled his headphones down, turning around to see Roman phase through the wall. Unamused, he put his headphones back on, “You’re here to bug me earlier than usual.”

“Oh come on, Count Woe-laf, the least you could do is listen to me when I come up. I got bored of eavesdropping on your dad's conversations with the neighbor's dad.”

Virgil rolled his eyes as he took off his headphones that weren't playing anything. Having them hung around his neck, he focused his attention on talking to Roman. As much as he hated to admit, Roman was a really good conversationist and often played to his banter. He wasn't a bad person and wasn't a bad friend, but Virgil knew that even if he had promised to help Roman, it didn't mean that he wasn't fully annoyed at Roman bugging him every day.

“Really? That usually keeps you entertained for two more hours.” Virgil finally responded to Roman's comment about being bored.

“Yeah, well they were talking about cars, and you know how I feel about cars.”

Virgil’s lips turned up in a small smile as he remembered about Roman's unfortunate accident, “Do I really? Please…enlighten me.”

Roman scowled, “I didn’t come here to get bullied by you. I just heard that your neighbor goes to the high school you go to. Apparently, he’s the same age as you too.”

“Uh huh…and?”

“Oh come on, I know you’re feeling nervous about this whole new kid thing, but trust me. It’s not that bad. If I remember anything about high school, there’s going to be someone who will go up to you and become friends with you, even if you don’t want to become friends with them.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I don’t even know the town’s view on magic users, or how many there are in this town.” Virgil wasn't even sure if he wanted Roman to be right. As much as it was nice to have someone to talk to as a friend, making friends by itself flagged his anxiety. It seemed like so much work, time, and socialization: three things that Virgil hated the most.

Roman pursed his lips, trying to remember about the town.

“Do you even know what town this is?” Virgil asked, watching Roman try to think of what to say.

“No.” Roman snorted, “Of course I don’t. Do you?”

“Gainsville. This has to be where you died, so why don’t you remember it?”

“What do you mean? I died in my hometown.” Roman snorted.

“What’s your hometown?”

There was a pause as Roman thought about it before his face melded in horror, “I don’t know.”

“How do you not know your hometown?” Virgil sputtered.

“I don’t know. All I know is that I lived in my hometown for my entire life, and I had a family-”

“Specifics about your family, like their names. Did you have any siblings? Grandparents that lived with you?” Chills ran down Virgil's spine. If Roman didn't remember anything about his past, that could mean something really bad happened during his life or that something more sinister was at play.

“...I don’t know.” Roman’s voice cracked as he started to realize that he didn’t know anything. “I know I had a mother and a father. I don’t know their names. I feel like I had a sibling, but I can’t remember who they were or what they looked like. Is that bad?”

Yes. It was very bad. Still, seeing Roman's distressed face put Virgil at unease. As much as he wanted to tell Roman the truth, he knew that the new ghost would probably be more terrified over something new he learned. From the looks of it, Roman still hadn't really gotten the whole 'being a ghost' thing down to a T, so Virgil decided he would tell Roman once the ghost was more comfortable.

“Well…I’ve certainly never run into a ghost that’s forgotten their past, and it’ll make things a little bit harder.” Virgil sighed, hoping that Roman couldn't hear the lie through his teeth.

Luckily, Roman didn't as he asked Virgil for more information. “Things as in…?”

“Finding what your unfinished business is.”

“Oh…” Roman seemed to slump down, clearly upset about it before he shook out of his mood, “Well, nevermind that. I came here to talk to you about going to school since you’re still a bit unsure about the whole socializing thing. I think you’re being a bit too hard on yourself. Just breathe and believe that someone will come up to be friends with you.”

“I don’t know…” Virgil murmured.

“Do you want me to join you? I can just float around and keep you company during your classes.” Roman offered.

That would be amusing, but Virgil knew that if Roman was beside him, it would probably make the principal lock Virgil away into the asylum. Virgil had a tendency to forget that ghosts were not something everyone could see, so it would be even worse in school. Again, he also wasn't sure about the amount of magic users and how they treated magic overall in the town.

“No, thank you.” Virgil exhaled a small laugh, “There could be mediums at the school and I don’t want them to judge me right away.”

Roman pouted, “But what am I going to do all day if you’re not here to keep my company?”

“My parents are home for half the day, and the other half, there are things such as the internet.” Virgil remarked, “It’s not your fault you haven’t learned how to interact with items yet.”

“I can interact with items?” Roman gaped, going to Virgil’s desk to try and pick up a pencil.

Virgil snorted as he watched Roman struggle to even make contact with the pen, the pen just phasing through his hand. “I wish I could help, but it looks like you’ve got the whole learning thing covered. See? You have something to do while I’m still at school.”

“Will you be okay there?” Roman asked, turning towards the boy and genuinely asking him.

“I will. Will you be okay here?”

“By the end of tomorrow, I will have figured out how to pick up a pen.” Roman gave a loopy smile to his friend.

“I doubt that, but I wish you luck.” Virgil saluted Roman.

-+=~=+-

When Virgil was dropped off at his school, he couldn’t help but agree with his mother about how fancy his new school was. Although it wasn’t private, the sheer size of the buildings and the way people presented themselves made it seem like they were.

Rushing into the school, it was clear the school had a system that Virgil wasn’t aware of because he almost got run over by a group of teenage boys racing through the halls. The only thing that stopped him was a pair of arms that pulled him out of the way.

Virgil turned around as he heard a boy's voice chirp in, "Woah! Careful there!"

The boy had a light-blue polo shirt with a grey cardigan that hung around his shoulders and a backpack hung from his right shoulder. He was smiling as he adjusted the black glasses on his face and stared at Virgil in front of him. "You okay there, kiddo?"

Virgil just nodded at the boy who was the same age as him. Instead of pointing out how the boy talked as if he was a middle-aged dad, Virgil just whispered out a "thank you".

“Don’t sweat it.” The boy shrugged, “You must be new here.”

“Yeah. That obvious?” Virgil pulled the sleeves from his jackets up, playing with the fringes as he desperately wanted the conversation to end. It wasn't the boy's fault. He seemed nice enough, but Virgil wasn't much of a conversationist. It was times like these where Virgil wondered about how Roman would fare in these scenarios and if he would hit it off better than Virgil was currently doing.

“Unfortunately.” He offered his hand out for a handshake, “The name’s Patton.”

“Virgil.” Virgil shook his hand before the two heard a bell sound off. The hallways seemed to almost be cleared, a few kids lingering. “Shouldn’t you be getting to class?”

“Two minute bell. I can spare those two minutes. Is there anywhere you need me to help you find?” Patton asked, kindness flowing through his words. He had nothing but the best intentions, Virgil could tell.

“If you really have time, the front office would be nice.” Virgil was relieved that someone had offered to help his because he was almost about to stumble through the hallways until he was able to find them. He would sacrifice some socialization if it meant that he didn't have to have a mental breakdown trying to find any of his classes or the front office.

“It’s right over there.” Patton pointed to the door right across from where they were looking.

Before Virgil could say anything, the two heard someone coming down the hall, and a teenage boy threatened Patton, “Morris, class?”

“Right, I’ve got to go. I hope you know where to go?” Patton smiled at Virgil. It looked almost as if his smile could be contagious from how happy he always seemed.

"Yeah, thanks." Virgil shrugged, watching Patton run to class before turning his attention to the boy who had threatened Patton.

The boy seemed to be even more formal than Patton with a black button-up, a tie, slicked hair, and black glasses that matched Patton's. He got to the point, staring at Virgil, "You must be Virgil Gray, the new kid. My name is Logan Sanders and I am the valedictorian of our class. I can show you the way around campus."

Logan's speech was all formal and apathetic too. Virgil wondered if the boy ever felt anything since the roboticism and formality seemed to take over Logan's entire personality.

“Don’t you have class?” Virgil raised an eyebrow. He doubted that Logan needed the classes anyways, being the valedictorian and all, but considering the boy had just scolded Patton for being late to class, it was making Virgil wonder.

"The principal asked me to show you around, so I was excused." Logan cleared his throat, "Let’s get you your schedule first and then I can give you the tour.”

Virgil nodded in agreement, following close behind Logan who had started to walk ahead towards where Patton had motioned for the front office. When they walked in, there was a desk where a lady sat, who Virgil could only assume was the secretary. Although she had no nametag, she was nice to him, helping Virgil with the classes right away.

“Alright, you’re all set. I’m guessing our lovely valedictorian is going to show you around.”

“You guessed correctly.” Logan replied, grabbing a binder on the side of the secretary’s desk, “I’ll return this on the tour.”

“Oh, you’re so sweet, honey. Thank you.” The secretary gave a small smile towards Logan.

"It's no problem, Ms. Inug." Logan nodded, forcing a smile on his face that looked almost unnatural. Virgil wanted to pour water onto Logan to see if he'd short-circuit, but wasn't brave enough to do so. They walked out soon after that, walking out back towards the hallway they first met.

Logan turned towards Virgil after stopping in the middle, “Most new kids don’t want the school tour. I’m asking you if you want it, or if you want to go to class right now.”

“What happens if I take the tour?”

“You skip your first period, I take you to your second, and you continue your day from then.”

“Do I need to know anything first?” Virgil asked, looking at his schedule. Math. In the start of the day. He hated math.

“You have Mr. Davidson. As much as I'd like to pride our school in having excellent teachers, Mr. Davidson doesn't seem to enjoy teaching and often relies on ineffective and outdated ways to teach a class."

So Virgil wasn't going to learn anything in math, if Virgil had interpreted Logan's words correctly. That was good, at least. He hated math.

“I’ll take the tour.”

"Then follow me." Logan replied as he walked around, giving short commentary on where they were, as well as a bit of background. The more into the school they got, the more clear it was that Logan knew the school like the back of his hand. He talked about rumors and legends that happened in the cafeteria, as well as the more prominent people in their grade.

Once their tour was done and Logan had made a quick stop to drop off the binder at the correct classroom, the two sat in the empty cafeteria, waiting for the bell to ring for Virgil to go to his second period. Virgil, noticing how quiet Logan liked to be, decided to break the ice.

“Who should I look out for?”

“In terms of what?”

“In terms of I shouldn’t piss them off or even bother talking to them.”

Logan looked up, thinking about it for a while, “Remus Porter is the king of the school. You piss him off, you have no more social life. Janus Wright is his best friend. You piss Janus off, you piss Remus off. Remus is really easy to be friends with, although most people don't stick around to listen to him talk. Just don’t piss off Janus.”

“Yikes. Is Janus a hard person to please?”

“No. If you’re quiet, he'll be okay with you. He doesn’t like loud people.”

“Okay.” Virgil took note of all that, “What about you? As a valedictorian, I’d assume you have a lot of influence.”

“I don’t let people get the better of me.” Logan murmured as he looked at the time on the watch. “The period is ending in a few minutes, so let’s start walking to avoid the crowd.”

Virgil stood up, following Logan, “Thanks for taking me around.”

“Of course.” Logan shrugged, as if it was known he would do anything anyone asked, “It’s just what I do.”

“What? Help people?”

“Yes.”

“Now, kiddo, you know lying's wrong.” A new voice remarked.

The two turned to see Patton walking behind them, raising an eyebrow at Logan.

“Shouldn’t you be in class, Morris?” Logan challenged, crossing his arms. Virgil noticed how quick Logan was to avoid the question.

“Bathroom pass.” Patton showed the pass wrapped around his arm, “Can’t bust me yet, Sanders. I just wanted to see how our new duckling was doing.”

Virgil became hypersensitive at the mention of Roman’s last name, unsure of why that was Logan’s nickname.

“Don’t call him that.” Logan scowled, “Go back to your class.”

“Oh you know you love me.” Patton grinned, “You can join us at lunch, Virgil, if you want.”

“I’m not included in this ‘us’.” Logan scoffed. “I’ll be seeing you in detention today. Don’t forget it.”

“Got it. See you two later.” Patton remarked as he walked away, going back to his class.

“You don’t seem too fond of him.” Virgil remarked.

“Patton Morris’s a class clown. To me, it means I have to clean up all of his messes. As long as I’ve known him, I don’t think there’s any way for the two of us to get along, especially when we’re such jarring opposites.”

“He seems nice though.”

“No comment.” Logan replied as he stopped at a classroom, “I’ll see you later in fourth. Are there any questions before I go?”

Virgil thought about it, the back of his head nagging to ask about if Logan’s surname was Sanders. However, he just shook his head, deciding against treading somewhere where he wasn’t sure if he was allowed to know.

-+=~=+-

Virgil walked into his English class, expecting his teacher to be chill when it was the exact opposite. Walking in, he was greeted by a chirpy “Hello”. Virgil gave a small awkward smile before his English teacher stared at his before gasping, “You must be Virgil, the new kid.”

Virgil winced at how loud his teacher was, “Yeah…”

“Oh gosh, I saw you on the roster, but I couldn’t believe it. It’s free seating everywhere, but I want you to-”

“Miss Loanes, leave the new kid alone.” A guy walking into the class snorted, “I love your enthusiasm, but half the class could not and would not care if they walked up and spent the entire class period talking about themselves.”

His English teacher paused before sighing, “You’re right, Remus.”

“New kid, sit with me.” Remus flashed a smile, offering the seat across from him. There was already a quiet guy sitting there with a face mask covering the bottom half of his face. From what Virgil could see, the guy had a scar on the left side of his face that he was trying to hide with spots of makeup and the face mask.

“What’s your name?” Remus grinned at Virgil expectantly.

“Virgil. You’re Remus, right?”

“I am him.” Remus confirmed, motioning to the boy he sat next to, ‘This is Janus, my best friend.”

Virgil remembered vaguely about what Logan said to not piss them off, “I’ve heard that you two are an undefeatable pair of best friends.”

“Untrue. He’s just a loud asshole who won’t stop talking to me.” Janus finally spoke, crossing his arms, “And he’s powerless too. I mean…pick a struggle, Remus.”

Remus rolled his eyes, “Okay, like you’re any different. You’re powerless too.”

Virgil watched Janus’s eyes flicker to Remus’s forehead as if he was staring at a mark, and Virgil looked there, expecting there to be a sharpie mark or something. There was nothing. It was clear Janus wasn't letting onto his powers. Whatever his power was, it was the most clear on Remus.

“Do you have powers?” Janus asked, “If I may ask.”

“Uh…” Virgil dragged out, wondering if he should lie or not. However, by the way that they seemed genuinely interested and not like they were going to capitalize on powers, he decided to be truthful. “I’m a medium. I can see ghosts.”

“Wait, really?” Remus’s face melded into interest, “How does that work? Can you hear them? Can you touch them? Can you-”

Janus cut Remus off before the boy could say anything more, "Let's not freak out the new kid just yet, Remus."

"You're no fun, Jan." Remus pouted, but still left the sentence unfinished.

Although confused, Virgil just moved on, hoping that Remus wasn't going to ask what Virgil thought Remus was going to ask. "Well, when ghosts die, there are some who have unfinished business. Those ghosts reside in between the spiritual world and the real world, and so they are in our world, but no one but mediums can see them. There are some mediums that can reach into the spirit world and talk to those ghosts, but I’m only the type of medium who can see ghosts with unfinished business. They can only move onto the next world once they finish their business.”

“How do they know their unfinished business?”

“They don’t. Most ghosts spend thousands of years trying to figure out what it is. Sometimes it’s getting their name in headlights, and sometimes it’s making things up with family members. I try to help as many ghosts as I run across to return to the spiritual world.”

"Ooh, has any of the ghosts' wishes ever been to watch someone shove a butt-"

"Remus Porter." Janus glared at his best friend, "What did I say about not freaking out your newfound friend?"

Although Janus had interrupted Remus before the boy could finish, Virgil could guess what Remus wanted to ask and he now understood why Logan said most people don't stick around long enough for Remus to talk.

"Hey, Jan, unlike you, I don't hide anything." Remus grinned.

"Clearly." Virgil grumbled as he desperately tried to erase any of the thoughts implanted into his head from Remus.

"You seem cool.” Janus remarked, “If you want to, there’s a place for you to sit with us at lunch.”

“Thanks." Virgil nodded. Although it seemed that the pair were weird, they seemed to be more together than most of the people at the school. They knew who they were and weren't ashamed of their place in high school. Virgil knew that they would probably be Virgil's go-to people to sit. "Patton also told me that. Apparently he likes to sit with Logan?”

Remus giggled. “No way. Valedictorian Logan Sanders?”

“Yeah, why? Is it that unbelievable?” Virgil raised an eyebrow. He had seen how much Logan was exasperated around Patton, but Patton didn't seem to have any ill intent or ill feelings towards Logan.

"Patton's been Logan's enemy since he first entered this building day 1. Logan was asked to show Patton around, since he was the principal’s son. He showed up to lunch doused in ketchup because Patton thought it would be funny to dump it on him after Logan mentioned loving tomatoes. It was meant to be a lighthearted prank and had it been anyone else in the school, it would've been fine. However, something snapped in Logan and he stopped telling people anything about himself after that. In fact, he stopped being friends with people after that." Janus remarked.

“Why?”

“Don’t know. All I know is that I don’t need to piss off the principal’s son anytime soon because he has power, both as a stepping stone to getting expelled, and a stepping stone towards getting hundreds of detention hours.”

“Got it, so don’t mess with Logan.”

“Don’t mess with the Sanders. I’ve heard his brother is pretty nasty too. Don’t know anything about him though because Logan never talks about his life.”

“Interesting.” Virgil noted the fact that Logan’s last name was also Sanders. However, once Virgil realized that Logan looked nothing like Roman, all of his logic was figuratively thrown out the window.

Before anyone could say anything more, the bell had rung and the three had to be quiet as they listened to the lecture.

-+=~=+-

The cafeteria was chaotic during lunch. Virgil had packed lunch, just in case he didn’t like the menu, as he was very stubborn in food. However, it was the direct opposite why he was glad he packed lunch. The options seemed so amazingly good, but they were all gone by the time he walked into the cafeteria.

Walking into the cafeteria, he glanced around aimlessly until he heard a voice.

“Virgil!”

He looked to where the voice was calling his to see Remus waving and smiling. Janus seemed to be staring, almost embarrassed and trying to get Remus to stop. They were both sitting at the table in the middle, with no one around them but everyone was still staring at them. Remus was currently eating his plate while Janus was playing a game on his phone.

Virgil just walked over, going over to sit with them.

“You bring lunch?” Remus asked, “What did you bring?”

“Pasta.” Virgil shrugged, “But the food options look amazing.”

“Here.” Janus pushed his plate towards Virgil, “I don’t like any of it. Remus always makes me get an extra plate because he’s hoping one day I’ll eat at school. He always eats my plate at the end of the day, but I’m afraid that he pretends like he’s not too full by the end of it. Spare the both of us.”

Virgil gave a small smile, grabbing it, “Thank you, Janus.”

Janus shrugged, going back to his game, “Let me know if you have any allergies next time. I can get lunch for you.”

“Oh, no, it’s okay. I’ll see if I can arrive early to grab it-”

“No, that’s not how this lunch thing works. It always gets sold out before the bell even rings. Trust me, we have a system to even get it. Let my little pogchamp get it for you.” Remus remarked, ruffling Janus' hair

“You call me that again and I’ll break your dick in half like a glowstick.” Janus threatened as he didn’t bother to even look up, continuing with playing the game on his phone.

“Alright, thanks, Janus.”

"Do you have room for another two?" A familiar voice came through.

The three looked up to see Patton grinning, holding Logan's collar behind him. Logan had his arms crossed as he was holding a clipboard and pencil.

“Sure.” Remus shrugged, making room for the two of them on the side Janus and him were on. Patton took the offer, but Logan went to sit next to Virgil, taking out a worksheet.

“Our one and only valedictorian. So studious.” Patton remarked with a genuine awe laced. It was clear to Virgil that Patton looked up to Logan a lot, even if it may not have been requited.

“He dragged me out of my club meeting.” Logan seemed annoyed, “Said they could run it without the president.”

“You have no trust in your board members.” Patton argued.

“I have all the trust in them! I have zero trust in you.” Logan glared as he worked on his math.

“Cookie?” Virgil offered the pissed off boy the chocolate chip cookie, which Logan gladly took.

“Thank you, Virgil.” He grumbled, going back to working on his homework.

“How's your first day been?” Patton asked, changing the subject.

“Good. Chaotic, but good. I made a couple new friends today.” Virgil nodded.

Patton flashed a smile, “I hope it’s the five of us here today.”

“Yeah.” Virgil cleared his throat, trying to hide his flush.

“Stop doing your homework for one second, Sanders, and pay attention to the conversation.” Patton swiped away Logan’s homework, leaving Logan to death-glare him. Patton's tone reminded Virgil of almost like a disappointed dad.

“I thought you said you don’t let people get the better of you.” Virgil remarked.

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t thinking of Patton Morris when I said it.” Logan rolled his eyes, pulling out a yellow slip of paper, writing Patton’s name on it and giving it to him. “Virgil, have you seen the rest of the city, or met anyone else around these parts?”

“No, why?”

“Well, it is a small city. You are bound to know people.” Logan shrugged, “I was just wondering because if not, you should check out the museum downtown. They finally added a few new sections.”

“What? Really? Why didn’t we hear about it?” Patton perked up, “I love the downtown museum. We should all go there and check it out one day.”

"I don't know, Patton." Janus raised an eyebrow, "We're all not that great of friends."

"This is a great way to make us friends! We would get to know each other.”

"Ooo, in that case, count me in." Remus grinned, wiggling his shoulders in interest, "We could list all the different ways you could kill someone in alphabetical order while we're there."

Patton's eyes widened at the thought of that and Janus sighed as he tried to de-escalate Patton's reaction, "To spare everyone's sanity, Remus and I will not be doing that."

“That sounds like anxiety and socialization I’m not prepared for. I’ll pass.” Virgil replied.

“Count me out.” Logan made a face, “I don’t get close to people.”

“Wow, what an ass-.” Patton snorted as he saw Logan standing up, clearly going to take care of responsibilities elsewhere. "-sset."

Virgil didn't know that Patton made jokes, let alone jokes like that. He had to hide a smile begging to break through. It was clear the rest of the group was doing the same.

“Like I can’t say the same about you.” Logan remarked back, fixing his glasses before walking away.

“I think it’d still be nice if we planned it.” Patton offered, “Besides, I don’t have many close friends. It’s kinda sad how Logan’s so close to me that he’s my best friend, but he won't even talk to me. Maybe if I get to know you guys, I’ll have better friends.”

“You keep pissing off Logan. It’s not our fault that he hates you.” Janus snorted, “If I had someone who did everything he could to stop me from doing stuff I wanted to do, I’d probably be pissed off too.”

“Hey, you do have that!” Patton motioned to Remus.

“Hey! You’re right! Why didn't you mention me?” Remus pouted.

"Sorry." Janus rolled his eyes, "The difference is that Remus and I have come to an understanding. You create messes for Logan that he has to clean up."

Patton slumped down, thinking about it, "Oh man...do I?"

“I don’t think the problem is that you keep annoying him, but I just think that you guys don’t work together because you guys are so different. He's quiet, you’re loud. Everyone loves you, everyone hates him. He's the valedictorian so he’s super serious all the time, and you’re the class clown who I've heard makes a lot of puns. Of course you guys are going to always go head in head.” Virgil offered.

“He's smart. I’m officially adopting his as mine.” Janus replied, putting his phone down to make eye contact with Virgil.

Seconds later, his eyes shifted to Virgil’s forehead, where Virgil touched, worried that something landed there.

“Ah, sorry, I thought I saw something. It was nothing.” Janus murmured as he looked away.

“I’m down to go!” Remus grinned, “Janus, I don’t care what you say, but you’re coming too.”

“Great.” Janus’s voice was deadpan.

“I’ll find a way to get Logan to come.” Patton grinned, “Leave it to me and the six remaining hours he has to spend with me in detention.”

“Why is he spending detention with you? I thought he was the valedictorian.” Virgil raised an eyebrow.

“Being the principal’s son means he gets a lot of responsibility that teachers aren’t willing to put in themselves. It saves on money, and Logan can write it off as responsibilities of being valedictorian.” Patton explained.

“That leads to a higher standard for the next valedictorian. The teachers will have to go back once Logan graduates.” Virgil frowned.

“Yeah, well, it’s rough for the Sanders. Apparently it was the same with his brother.” Janus murmured, “There’s always been a rumor that’s spread around that there’s a reason his brother isn’t seen around the city anymore, the reason being that he was sick of everything.”

“Is this just known information? Should we be talking about it?” Virgil didn't feel comfortable in this situation. He felt as if he shouldn't be talking about it.

“Logan knows about everything. There’s no doubt he also knows the rumors that surround his family.” Remus remarked.

“Does anyone know his brother’s name?” Virgil asked.

Everyone shrugged, “No one talks about him. Not even the Sanders family. It’s almost as if he disappeared from existence for them.”

“Really?”

“Actually, I used to be really good friends with Logan.” Janus shrugged, “He was really open all the time, and happy. he was loud and he felt like himself. He was still a nerd, but he was happy and proud about it. Then…around middle school, something happened and he stopped doing everything he used to do. He stopped being loud and himself, and instead became closed off. He stopped talking to people outside of schoolwork. He started working harder on stuff, and didn’t go anywhere if it wasn’t to study. He just became a recluse after middle school.”

“You think it has anything to do with his brother?” Patton asked.

A throat cleared caught everyone's attention. The four turned around to see Logan standing, unamused, "You should know…it’s not very nice to talk about rumors behind someone’s back.”

Speechless, the four could only stare at Logan as if he had caught them in an intricate web of lies. Guilt crawled up Virgil's spine, knowing that he should've stopped everyone from talking about it. However, Logan seemed to be the most embarrassed out of all of them as he walked up to Patton.

"Apologies. I had forgotten about my Calculus homework that Patton had grabbed out of my hand." Logan murmured as he held his hand out for Patton. Patton was quick to give Logan his things and he started to walk away.

No one said anything as they watched Logan walk away. At least until Logan broke the silence once more upon halting in his tracks and turning back to them. His cheeks were flushed and it was the first time Virgil ever saw any real emotion on Logan's face. He seemed upset almost.

"I don't care if you do speculate on my life, or about my family. Just...please, whatever you say, leave my brother out of it."

Logan turned on his heel and walked out of the classroom before he could even get confirmation from the others. Once he was gone though, Patton's expressions flooded with sadness and guilt. "Logan's never sounded so desperate. He always has a polite or authoritative tone."

"Right...well, you heard the boy. No more talking about his brother." Janus exhaled a sharp breath as he stood up, "Come on, Re. Let's get to our own math class before you start speaking about more gore."

“Coming!” Remus packed up as fast as possible, bounding towards the boy who had already started walking.

“Which way are you going?” Patton grinned, turning his full attention to Virgil. “I’ll walk you there.”

Virgil uncrumpled the paper he had shoved into his pocket to look at the last class of the schedule, "Art."

“We should go before the crowd picks up when the bell rings.”

The two walked in silence the entire way to the class, until Virgil broke the silence, “Hey Patton?”

“Hm?”

“Do you think Logan has a power that makes him scared of getting close to people? Maybe that’s why he stopped talking to Janus.”

“Hm, maybe.” Patton smiled, “I’ll ask today, but I doubt it. I think he has magic. I just…don’t think he uses his power ever.”

“Really?”

“Trust me. I can feel it when people have powers.”

“Do you really know?”

“Yes, I do, Mr. Boy With Powers.” Patton remarked as he walked away, right as Virgil stopped by his classroom. ————– Patton may not make as many puns in this fic since it's so hard for me to make puns, forgive meeeee T-T, but ooooo, I love characterization and learning about backstories. Also 5/6 of the gang are together now and we get more insight into the dynamics of everyone~

If you enjoyed this, please consider reblogging! Reblogging helps me a lot and are very appreciated. Check out my masterlist for more, feel free to request any writings, and stick around if you want to see the rest of what I have in store for this! :)

#logan in this fic has my whole heart #cw slight swearing #cw intrusive thoughts #i'm just going to start tagging remus content as intrusive thoughts LMAO #chapter 4 #sanders sides #the fate of the marked six #high school au #ts patton #ts logan #ts janus #ts roman #ts remus #patton sanders #logan sanders #roman sanders #virgil sanders #janus has the ability to see others' fates #ts virgil #medium virgil #logan caring too much but pretending not to be #remus is powerless? (for now) #patton is powerless too? (for now) #logan is powerlesss or not? (we'll find out) #roman has teleportation powers

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 201

Not even gonna lie, I kinda gave up on the queue at this point. It seems like every time there is an update to the site, my scheduled posts vanish. So, instead, I brought my tablet and a mobile hotspot to work so I could post on time,

Got to do what you got to do, right?

Shout outs for this week go to @bogwalkr and @peachymis, both of whom have been going through chapters at a very impressive clip.

Thanks, as always, goes to @baelpenrose for his beta reading, and also @quantumizedinsanity, who is trying to help me get this huge thing cleaned up for AO3.

“Can I retire yet?” I groaned as I fell on my sofa.

Immediately, I levitated back to a standing position with a shriek when a disembodied voice responded. “You have four more months until then, Wisdom.”

One hand slammed into my sternum while the other braced against the nearest sturdy surface as I caught my breath. “Are… are you speaking to me again, Miys?”  Thankfully, I didn’t even have to remind myself to not get my hopes up, seeing as I was half panicking and half mad as hell.

“I have never declined to speak to you.”

Wincing at the literal nature of the response, I tried again. “I was under the impression that you were angry with me, specifically, and no longer fraternizing with the humans on board, in general.  This is definitely the first time in several months that you have voluntarily spoken to me unless I asked a direct question in an official capacity.”

“Technically, asking an empty room the remaining duration of your tenure in your current role with the Council is a question in an official capacity, and one which could be interpreted to be directed at me.”

Discretion was the better part of valor, and cowardice sufficed, so I agreed to let it drop. “I thought I had one Terran year after the establishment of the Colony?”

“A year which will largely consist of handing over your responsibilities and smoothing the transition, not any actual work.”

Shaking my head, I made my way to the console. “One adult beverage, hold the additional nutrients just this once,” I asked before continuing. “And I don’t know where you got the impression that handing over a job isn’t actual work.”

“I fail to see the laborious part of a transition in which you have been training your replacement options for the better part of a decade.”

“Oooo,” I drew out mischievously. “You really are talking to me again. And to what may I attribute this wondrous occasion?”

“I am simply responding to your inquiry and also attempting to report a malfunction within the computers that is preventing new information from being transmitted to the escort fleet.  The time stamps are updating, but the data transmissions are simply reporting data from the last fourteen ship days. It is also transmitting the data out of sequence. It is distressing.”

Surrrre it is, bud. I’d received more impassioned weather reports. Out loud, I assured them “I’ll have Derek take a look. I assume that is why you told me rather than Pranav or Alice?”

A buzzing hum betrayed their coming excuse. “I am not entirely certain that Derek is not the cause.”

I arched a brow at the ceiling and pursed my lips to one side. “It’s not like he’s going to lie about it. He’ll just refuse to fix it.”

“I still request that you belay any inquiry in that direction until I am certain.”  The response was rushed, which told me all I needed to know.

Miys had done it, and humans dinking around in the system were the scapegoat. “In that case, let me know when you’ve finished your investigation, and I will put the appropriate parties on it,” I caged.

“Duly noted. What will you do once you leave the Council?”

I twisted my neck into a very uncomfortable position, purely out of confusion. “I’m…. I’m not sure, Miys.”

“You may call me Noah, Wisdom.” There was a subsonic hum behind the normal buzz of their ‘casual’ tone.

“I’m not sure what I’ll do when I leave the Council, Noah,” I sighed, sitting on the couch again and dropping my head against the back. “I suck at glass blowing, at any constructive portions of agriculture, and my knitting is ugly at best.”

Another hum issued from the ceiling, and my heart twisted in hope for better times. “You show significant proficiency in combat medicine - a disturbing amount for a human with no record of enlistment, radicalism, or training.”

“Eyeah. We’re not going into medicine.”

“Your psychological profile is rather counter indicative. What about your aptitude in cultivating spores?”

I scowled softly. “Leaving food in my fridge entirely longer than is necessary or healthy is not an aptitude.”

My drink spilled down my shirt when I heard Tyche’s voice drily intone “You would be surprised.”

“What the fuck!?” I shouted, brushing droplets off of me. “You called my sister?”

“I apologize, I did not.” A grinding noise I had never noticed before was added to their voice, and I wondered if it was a malfunction or an emotion I hadn’t identified yet. “I am unable to accurately produce the necessary level of emotional tone, and have established that Tyche’s tone is the one you are most responsive to in the regard to that emotion.”

Of fucking course. I rubbed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Hokay. Let’s run this back. You mentioned my proficiency in cultivating spores. I said ‘Leaving food in my fridge entirely longer than necessary or healthy is not an aptitude’.”

“You would be surprised.”

“You want me to learn to grow fungi.” In context and less startled, I blinked several times. “Wait. Waitwait wait.”  Scrabbling, I bolted to set my drink in the console for a refill while I flicked my datapad open and started typing furiously. “Noah, I need you to send me all mycologists on the Ark. If you find them before I do, I’ll buy you dinner.”

“I do not eat Terran food.”

“But you do ingest composted matter, and I can get that. You can do whatever you do while we chat. We’ll have dinner. It works…” I trailed off as my search came up with one biologist with a focus in the topic and three with sub-specialties. “Okay, we do have mycologists…. That’s a good sign.” Granted, it wasn’t very many, but if I went that route I would have someone to show me the ropes.

“Cultivation of spores on hot planets is particularly difficult.”

“We have caves,” I waved off. “Networks and networks of caves. The humidity is excellent in subsurface formations warmed by geothermal springs.”

“If humans do not take up the space.” Was Miys wheedling? That sounded like wheedling.

“Most humans despise humidity unless there is a corresponding amount of airflow,” I assured them. “Else will be fine, I just need to figure out what their preferred diet is these days….”

“Yes, Else.” The confirmation was sharper than I was used to, but I shook my head and continued on with the new challenge.

“AH!” I barked. “Says here that eighty percent of Else’s current configuration subsists on high protein vegetable matter and - capsaicin. Whoops! Sorry about that, Noah.” It did no good to even pretend I was blameless in our resident fledgling species’ love of the spice.  Granted, I was maybe half of half of half of a percent responsible, but still. Culpability.

“Technically, bell peppers contain capsaicin, and I am quite all right with those.”

That made my brows furrow. “Noah, Else loves capsaicin, the higher the concentration the better. Bell peppers aren’t going to cut it.”

“I understand that the podlings prefer much spicier fare,” Noah conceded. “But it does cause me burns.”

Suddenly, their interest in my future vocation seemed a lot less like concern for Else. Very, very carefully, I ventured my next comment. “We have the areas of the Ark dedicated to cultivation of foods that may harm you designated as a biohazard.”

“This is correct.”

“And the bell peppers are not in there,” I pointed out. “They are in the same BioLabs as the lettuces so that they go into the same biowaste containers. Because we know you like them.”

“This is also correct.”

“Is someone growing spicy spice in those labs without our knowledge? In labs other than One and Five?”

“This is not accurate. No, Wisdom, they are not.”

I nodded slowly. “So you are suggesting that we cultivate the produce from BioLabs three, four, seven, and ten in locations on Von as far from the produce from Biolabs One and Five as possible?”

“That would be preferred.”

“And Biolab Six is safe to put near the spicier group?” Six was dedicated to simulated genetic sequencing on Terran livestock that was considered either unkosher or haram.

“Yes, Wisdom.”

I nodded again. “But not Nine.” Nine was the same aquaponics lab that Eino assisted in, the one that smelled like hell and cow farts.

“Certainly not Nine. Data indicates that the crops in Nine would work far better embedded in the crops from Four and Seven, specifically.”

“Hmm.” I raised my brows and stood to get another drink. Four and Seven held crops that were especially prone to rot and required a significant degree of climate control. Which made them a very odd choice to suggest they be grown near the aquaponic crops. Something was going on, that much I knew.  I couldn’t tell if it was help or sabotage. “Well then. A toast. To computer malfunctions, mycology, and… knowing what crops don’t mix well.”

“Indeed.”

I needed someone a bit more familiar with this, for sure. And I knew just where to start.

<<Prev       Masterlist     Next>>

#the miys #scifi #original scifi #HUMANS ARE WEIRD #post post apocalypse