#edit: december 2. this was as it turns out too nice

[septembersghost]

my queue was supposed to run out tonight (11/19) - i'm nothing if not someone who clings to dates and anniversaries, and exactly a month ago, i realized i had enough posts stowed in it to last until today. of all the days. kismet. you know when it's time to go. but i ended up adding some posts from my (still copious) drafts, and no matter how i finagled it, it was impossible to make them all fit by the time today ended. so it gets a little bit of extra time. maybe, in honor of this blog's existence, that's fitting.

you all know this, i've said it, typically in gratitude, many times already. this blog was never meant to last. i came back in november 2020 expecting a couple of months, maybe to be here until the new year. i told very few people, anticipating the goodbye, not wanting to cause anyone undue anguish when i had to vanish again. something i didn't expect was the sheer (admittedly devasting) emotion that would tie itself to those two weeks when i started interacting again, nor that it would have any outreach or impact, but somehow it did. then time kept spinning on, extending itself, gossamer threads unfurling each day. my following kept growing, far beyond what i could have anticipated, greater than i'd ever established on any of my previous blogs. moving around is unfortunately a pattern at this point, every time for reasons that felt quietly catastrophic. not being able to pay bills for a while. angel's death and the ensuing difficult circumstances. so here, i kept anxiously imagining why i'd eventually have to leave, how to plan for it. poverty issues. the homelessness we were facing through the entirety of a couple of years until last august (and my dad having to be the saving grace). worsening health issues. i never knew, i couldn't predict it, i just worried about it. often tried to brace for it. maybe i got too comfortable this year, because this was when i started to think it wouldn't happen, that i really could stay. little did i know. and the reasons...are not reasons i ever fathomed, why would i have? how could i have? i wish it weren't so. (i wish a lot of things.)

i thought sometimes about the words i would leave you with, none of which are suitable now. i almost wrote nothing, yet found that feeling wrong, couldn't leave without something about parting.

thus it turns out i'm leaving before it's strictly necessary, before it's the fear of personal catastrophe coming to fruition, not knowing what i'll do or where i'll metaphorically go, as that is the downside of chronic illness and isolation narrowing this to my sole outlet. (lyrics keep running through my mind, there are always lyrics stuck in my head. no matter where i go, there'll be memories that tug at my sleeve, but there will also be more to question, yet more to believe...teach me to be more adaptive...help me say goodbye). my body is in such a fragile state right now (my mind not far behind) that maybe what i need to do is rest. just rest for a while.

this blog was never meant to grow the way it did, to take asks and have conversations like i did, that was a somewhat new (sometimes scary! often fun) experience for me. it's one that will never be replicated. to my loyal and lovely anons, i'm so sorry that i had to cut you off unexpectedly and couldn't reinstate communication - i know that you weren't able to reach out to me as soon as i did that, and that certainly wasn't your fault, it was a response to the tenor of this website. i apologize for the hundreds of messages i never had the chance to answer. i'm appreciative of the things you shared with me and all the times we got to talk.

i sincerely hope some of you learn to be kinder and wiser and less reactionary and more willing to learn and to listen rather than to attack those who have never wronged you and who do not deserve that. i'm being too nice, but i hope you learn that misusing your supposed social justice to do harm and foment hatred and stew in ignorant cruelty makes any principles you purport to have utterly void. my hope for that is low at the moment, but it's still got to be there. waiting to be found.

to those of you who have never been anything but kind, you are true treasures, the lights in the darkness, the loving and compassionate embodiment of human spirit. some of you have (quite literally) helped keep my mom and me alive, and i can never repay that or do enough in this life to quantify it. some of you have been here for me every single day, to listen and laugh and cry and understand. i don't think i would've bothered to fight through these past three years had i not had your presences in my life. i wouldn't have had as much of a reason. there are times when i still haven't felt like i had a reason, i struggle through so many varied griefs, but then i continued to wake up, and would come on here and find something joyful or beautiful or affirming that someone had sent or posted, and it gave me an anchor. there are passions and interests i shared or discovered here that were so uplifting and enlightening, and i will carry them in my heart always. being here to find those was such a blessing. being here with you to indulge in them was such a blessing. thank you. i pray your continued paths have more of that ahead. look at all the things you've done for me. there are certain things that once you have no time can wear away.

you know that line from the wizard of oz?: hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable. maybe that isn't true, maybe our hearts being broken is proof of something. there are people who hurt me on such a profound level who i know weren't affected by it at all, but i refuse to define my sensitivity as a negative. my softness (too soft for all of it, indeed) does not quite provide me with a weapon, but it doesn't crumple. hearts can be broken repeatedly and still beat, which i've thought about a lot lately. shattered souls just make a new mosaic. it's a different picture than it was before, but the color and light persists. and in the remains of that, a handful of people have shown me depths of caring and resilience that i wouldn't have gotten to hold onto otherwise, which is an extraordinary thing. the precious rarities have to mean something more, don't they? i would think so. i believe it. or i'm trying. i keep trying with all my might.

maybe i stayed too long at the fair. maybe this is a consequence of overplaying my hand, gambling a little too much with time to where it had to teach me something. maybe i needed the reminder that sometimes we have to fight to retain our spirits, and other times we have to retreat. maybe i needed a reminder that all that extra time was a miracle. i don't take it for granted.

whether we've spoken directly, be that consistently or in scattered flurries, whether we've interacted in very personal ways or simply in liked hearts on the dash, i hope there was goodness and light in it. i hope there's a memory i leave here that's sweet. (as long as i'm borrowing phrases, i hope you'll think of me fondly sometimes.) i hope there was something warm and enriching here. i hope you know what you've been and meant to me. i said so many times that this blog was my cozy haunted house - the ghosts will linger here forever, and i know they'll never mind if you want to step in and visit.

with all my heart, i love so many of you so dearly. i am so lucky to have your friendships. please move gently through life. please hold onto the things that illuminate it for you, and provide that where you can. please do your best to repair even the smallest of tears in the world. you are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.

there must be lights burning brighter somewhere.

something yet remains. i remain. and i do my best to be brave.

#bubble wrap around my heart #jess.mess #namarie #gam zu l'tovah #edit: december 2. this was as it turns out too nice #because today this website decided to desecrate something central and sacred #i wish i could verbalize to you despicable people the profound soul deep hurt you're causing #and the constant fear and trauma you're instilling by making every space so blatantly hateful and hostile and unsafe #but you don't get to take a PRAYER away from its people. you don't get that power ever. that light will NEVER be diminished #i have no respect for any of you doing this. you're evil #i have infinite respect for myself now though. i know who i am. and i'm done #you don't deserve me and you never deserved my friendship or my trust or my heart #proverbs 4:23 #goodbye.

[lyralit]

4.1.24 - the importance of learning new things

As much as I think academic & work focus is incredibly important going into the new year, one of my other goals is to practice doing more: to learn all of the things I want to do, in addition to work, in addition to writing. I want to know how to do thousands of little things, and I think the longer we wait, the less likely we are to do them.

Picking up a new hobby doesn't have to be buying a dozen textbooks and spending hundreds of dollars on lessons because you might have the slightest interest: it can be from whatever you have here, now, and you'll never learn if you don't get started.

Some of the things I've been getting into (as I've mentioned before) are baking & crocheting. it just feels so cozy and nice & I love the idea of comfort.

here is a list of things I want to / you should try that's new!

learning a new language. fifteen minutes a day, I kid you not. I'm learning latin on duolingo and I don't ever think about it, but when I do it (25 day streak 💪🏻), I'm starting to notice my improvements

consuming good media. and that's not scrolling for half an hour on tumblr. it's books—deep ones and silly ones and ones about romance and dragons and apocalypses. it's movies! I watched keira knightley's pride and prejudice twice in the last few months, and also three men and a baby which is something I never thought I would watch, but it was quite funny I think. and I learn from it: I cannot write humour or romance for the life of me, so it's basically studying to write (is the self-gaslighting too evident?)

learning to crochet. I made a silly little headband today, after scrolling through pinterest and desperately wanting one. I started crocheting in december to give as gifts (I completed none of my wips, much like when I write) and used the tools I had around me: an old rainbow loom hook and whatever string I could find. now I'm proud to say I can read somewhat fluently crochet acronyms.

baking. I keep saying this. I know. but when I tell you a two years ago I was exploding cupcakes in the oven and last month I made bakery-style cookies...I made bread! a loaf of bread! (in a bread machine, but it's so good and I instantly made another. there is one in the bread machine right now). honestly it just made me feel that much better about improvement, and trying new things, and that is the mindset I want for the new year.

learning to code. in all honesty, I never thought I was a compsci - engineer kind of person. then this year, out of sudden (masterminded) urges, I joined a bunch of tech and robotics initiatives, and maybe it's the sense of community (I can rejoice in finding another nerdy group) but now I am happily chauffeuring myself to these meetings 4h a week. I'm looking into pursuing more into the fields of eng and science. and I'm learning some code from one of the friends I've made!

starting a blog. ...I know most of the people who linger around my blog stay for the writing content (the last posts have turned this writerblr into a digital diary, and I'm only half sorry for that). but since I've joined tumblr (almost three years ago now!) I've got to meet so many wonderful people (including you!) and want to try so many things.

and I get it. it's overwhelming. so here are some starting goals that maybe I'll try also.

start doing art. -> make a card for someone as a gift.

learn a new sport & start exercising. (I'm trying out track & field in the spring, so stay tuned to figure out how that goes) -> see if someone will come play ball with you. do 1 or 2 youtube workout videos a week.

film videos of your daily life. it doesn't need to be for posting! -> edit together clips you've taken for a last year recape.

start a scrapbook. -> print out photos and dig up construction paper. decorate a page.

make a poetry journal. -> go on pinterest to read poetry! pin styles you like and set fifteen minutes to writing.

make a regular journal! -> write once a day. just try: goals for the day in the morning, or a recap at night.

try your hand at gardening. -> research plants that grow well in your region. see if any of the seeds you may have at home are useful. water your lawn. buy a plant and try to keep it alive (set reminders, leave it in front of your sink)

learn to make candles. -> watch a youtube tutorial. see if you can play around with candles you already have.

play chess. -> see if someone will play chess with you. no? chess.com is right there. go make an account. go find a stranger.

learn to play an instrument off youtube. -> maybe you have a piano sitting around, or a guitar you've never touched. you don't even need to master it. pick a song you like and google that. no instrument? maybe there's a way to play drums with home items.

go for a run. -> once a week. a set time. just shoes and the outdoors. too cold? go to a gym and use a treadmill. maybe that's not possible? skip rope.

start / join a book club. -> just you, or some close friends, or people online. a book a month. talk about it.

** on that note, would anyone like to join a tumblr book club? slide into my asks and maybe we can get a blog list!

thank you for reading again <3 until next time.

k.

#lyralit #writerblr #blog post #creative writing #writblr #writing prompts #writing ideas #writers block #writing #writers #mental health #taking breaks

[seraphinitegames]

The Wayhaven Chronicles—Update 09/Dec/2022

We're in full swing with the testing!

It's amazing getting comments back from people actually playing the game!!

It's also nice as the fixes coming back to me now are mostly all spelling or grammar issues rather than bug fixes. That's always a good turning point in the testing process!

I did realise as I was going through that I did miss out one variable! It meant I had to go through for all the 'bold/shy' flags and add the separate flags that trigger in the love triangle (so it tracks how you are flirting with N or A individually). So that took quite some time, but I know now that they will trigger properly for people in the love triangle!

Social media days were this week as well! Had a blast on the winter scenarios for Patreon! Which I can now give the dates of:

'In Snowy Depths…' (Nate/Nat Winter Special) - 8th December 2022

When the MC and Nate/Nat get stuck in the snow after an unfortunate snowy collision that ruins Adam/Ava's, uh, I mean the Agency's SUV, they have to find a way to warm up and pass the time until help arrives.

-

'Silent Night…' (Mason/Morgan Winter Special)- 15th December 2022

As usual, the MC finds Mason/Morgan on the roof, enjoying a serene night, watching the stars. And it's finally revealed why it's such a popular spot for the usually grumpy vampire.

-

'Ice-breaker' (Farah/Felix Winter Special) - 22nd December 2022

Unsurprisingly, Farah/Felix takes to ice-skating as easily as everything else. But maybe they're not too eager to let it show. The excuse of a few wobbles to get closer to the MC is just too much to resist...

-

'At All Costs!' (Adam/Ava Winter Special) - 29th December 2022

It's Wayhaven's annual winter fundraiser! This year features teams working to build the best gingerbread house to win a fun prize. But fun tends to take a back seat when Adam/Ava's competitive spirit takes over. And Adam/Ava will have the best gingerbread house. The absolute best. No one will ever better it!

--

With the intensity of this last testing and editing phase, I've only done 1 ask instead of the usual 2 (though some days have 2 as I managed to fit in a few extra!) for Tumblr. I've also asked Nai to take a break on reblogs too so that she can give her entire focus over to testing!

But we're on the last stretch home now!!

Hope you all have the best weekend! We'll be offline as usual, so I'll talk to you all soon! <3

#the wayhaven chronicles #update #progress report #book three #nearly there!!

[pastafossa]

The last day of 2023.

And holy shit has it been a chaotic ride, one which you all shared with me, or that's what it feels like!

The Major Moments:

Feb: Cato's cancer diagnosis and discovery of weird mutated cells that likely won't be explained until after he passes away. He's still with me, fortunately! No idea how much time he has left but I'm grateful for every second

April: a small leak in my dining room ceiling turned into a bigger leak which turned into a massive hole in the ceiling, at least it wasn't winter???

May: DD Born Again Photos give us all a goddamn heart attack

May: I FUCKING REACH MY OVERALL 1,000,000 WORD COUNT ON AO3. 🎊 🎉 🎊 Next stop is 1mill for TRT!

June: Went to my first con since Covid! Drove all the way down to Philly to see Charlie Cox, WHICH WAS FUCKING AMAZING, HE HELD THE RED THREAD FOR OUR PHOTO, MY FANFIC DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE, AND I TOLD HIM WHAT DD MEANS TO ME AND HE WAS SO NICE I COULD CRY

June: At that same con, I finally FINALLY got to meet my bff @wonderlandmind4 in person after many many many late nights of chatting, and we just CLICKED like we'd been friends for years, which I should have expected, but still! And then I got to meet a bunch of my readers, too! Best con experience EVER

July: enter Whoops Covid Finally Got Me After 3 Years But Charlie Was Worth It ™

July: Finally dusted off my draft of Pasta's First Dark Fic cause even if my brain was too fuzzy to write, I figured I could edit a bit. And I did! And was pretty happy with the results!

August: Shit Now There's A Long Covid Heart Issue And I Can't Be Seen Until Late November Thanks Covid ®

August: leak in the garage leads to me losing about 65% of all the beautiful, special woods pieces I'd gathered over the course of six years for carving. Within a week I am gifted a huge bin of wood from a kind soul at my local witchy shop

Sept: TRT's 6th anniversary!

Nov: I was slowly getting back into the swing of things, doing a bit of writing in between learning to manage whatever was going on with my heart (which we'll hopefully figure out in January when I get all the results of testing in Jan)

Early Dec, and the worst week of my life: mom got sick. Within one day she went from not feeling good to needing an ambulance. By the next day, she was in the ICU - flu induced double pneumonia that was interfering with her breathing and heart issues. And with one more day, she was put into an induced coma and ventilated, without any of us sure if she'd pull through. They told us she'd likely be under for two weeks, potentially longer even if she made it. The amount of messages and supportive comments I got from all of you, the talks I had with @wonderlandmind4 and @shouldbestudying41, just the general sense of having a community to help me means more than I can ever say as you all helped me through that terrible, horrible moment, even if it was just gently messaging me to remind me to try to eat.

Mid Dec: against ALL odds, Mom was off the ventilator in a week. By week 2, she was out of the ICU. By week 3? Off to the physical rehab center. She was there a grand total of 1 week before she was allowed to come home to finish her recovery. Early December was the worst moment of my life, and yet it was also bookended by the best Christmas of my life even if it was spent at the rehab center, because I got to have my mama back, and hug her and tell her I loved her and make jokes, and now she's home and we've been watching Christmas movies and eating grilled cheeses, and as far as I'm concerned, that's what the holiday is to me: not presents and snow and lights, but this moment, this time with her. 'In all the places you find love, it feels like Christmas.'

In just a few hours for me, it'll be 2024. I have no idea what to expect going forward, or even what to plan for, much less a resolution. I know I want to get back to TRT when mom's a bit better (she still needs a lot of help, understandably). I know there are wood carvings I want make; friends I want to visit; witchy events at my local shop I want to go to. But other than that... who knows? If I'm lucky, things will be calmer than this past year. But even if they aren't, at least I know I have dear friends, all of you, and my family, including Pasta Mama, to help me through it.

Goodbye, 2023. Hello, 2024.

#new years #tw: sick parent #tw: sick pet #i have had a doozy of a year #and i truly don't think i'd have gotten through it without all of you #i feel like my life was just one great big tilt a whirl this year #incredible highs and incredible lows #we'll just have to see what 2024 brings #thank you to all of you this year #for your chats and messages #your comments and reaching out #it hasn't exactly been a smooth ride this year and i'm so grateful to all of you that helped push that metaphorical car up the hill with me #we'll see what comes this next year

[kimtaegis]

gifmaker / cc wrapped ✦ every month of 2023

thank you so much to my favourites @raplinenthusiasts, @jkvjimin, @starcatching, @cordiallyfuturedwight, @sevencoloredstar, @rjshope, @hyunsung, @loversmore & @ye-xiu for wanting me to look back at my creations from last year, I love you!!

January 🌙 most popular: fluffy haired jungkook comp 🤍 my favourite: jimin x satellite gfx for my sweet mona; one of my most favourite things I've ever created, actually! I love how the textures turned out, and how I visualised the lyrics

February 🌙 most popular: yoongi-centric ot7 comp (😔😔😔) 🤍 my favourite: gradient taekook comp; the PLANNING that went into this agdhhj I was super proud of how this looked in the end! plus I love making gifts for others &lt;3

March 🌙 most popular: yoongi's signature smirk comp 🤍 my favourite: jimin FACE gfx; I don't even know what had gotten into me, I made that so comparably fast?? I was just obsessed with the water theme and the new effects I used - the fact that I made a moving water reflection? hell yeah

April 🌙 most popular: Road to D-Day comp (my most popular from this whole year, actually) 🤍 my favourite: gradient jimin FACE era comp; probably my favourite set from this whole year, I'm beyond proud of how this looks, so vibrant and prettyyy lmao also Jimin and FACE were definitely the highlight of my year, I was so happy while making this)

May 🌙 most popular: jinminkook comp 🤍 my favourite: I love all three comps I made that month, but I think it's still gonna be awi's birthday jimin gfx, simply because I love her so much and the middle panel had my back in PAIN lmao, I love animating doodles even if it's a lot of work

June 🌙 most popular: the tannies being bad at sports comp 🤍 my favourite: they connect to 7G comp; unfortunately I had no ideas for a festa post this year, but I still made these two sets to celebrate them a little bit. I just love comps that have me smiling the whole time while making them!

July 🌙 most popular: jctpmwsmlastilmmtu pt. 1 (mimi series) 🤍 my favourite: yeah it's this one too :((( I love jimin so much y'all and that comp series is so self-indulgent and comforting and healing it literally. makes. me. tear. up. just look at him oh my god

August 🌙 most popular: jungkook for calvin klein 🤍 my favourite: yoongi's final concert; broke my heart into a million pieces, but his smiles glued it somewhat back together. I will forever be sad and miserable about this tour so let's not talk about it

September 🌙 most popular: jctpmwsmlastilmmtu pt. 2 (mimi series) 🤍 my favourite: ...yeah that one again :( but I also made so many nice taehyung layover gifs &lt;33

October 🌙 most popular: the tannies sweeping yoongi off his feet comp, but the threemin suchwita comp literally just has one note less lol 🤍 my favourite: that one's tough... it was mimi month and so much good stuff got released + vicnic... ah I'll just go with blond jimin in his fluffy green sweater 💚

November 🌙 most popular: my sweet boiled dumpling pouty yoongi :((( 🤍 my favourite: the sweet boiled dumpling running excitingly; it was missing yoongi and the tannies month (still ongoing)

December 🌙 most popular: jimin backstage in his purple Filter outfit (while y'all saw the gender demon I saw my slayful colouring...and the gender demon) 🤍 my favourite: moon/ the astronaut seokjin gfx for my love kayla; it was nice to make an edit without time pressure for once, and I love the references I put in, also the colours and textures!

I'm tagging @avizou, @agustd3, @magicshop, @dasisugarun, @jung-koook, @jinstronaut and @taetheists, have fun!! 🤍

#tag game #*gifs #t'was a good year! so many comps lol #am also pretty happy with my more graphic-y creations #the jimin gif's colouring looks so different on mobile? I don't get it

[chickenstrangers]

2023 gifs in review tag game

tagged by @khaotunq (here!) to post my favorite/most popular gifs throughout the year. thank you!!🩵🩵🩵

I only started making gifs partway through this year, so there was a big learning curve and i still think i'm pretty newbie but it has been a lot of fun and it's nice looking back on how much i think i've improved, though i have so much left to learn next year

i am going to ramble too much because this is my post, fair warning, forgive my self indulgence

april

this was the very beginning, back in the photopea days before i tried photoshop (i am still quite fond of photopea, 1. because it is free and 2, for stills i think it's just as good as photoshop, but i could never figure out how to make gifs look good with its dithering system. i have seen some remarkable gifmakers using photopea tho so that's a my limited skill problem, and i'm glad i used it to dip my toes into the process!)

i only posted 1 set for abaab this month which looks not good but is still a very fun scene, but this was not actually the first thing i made (see below).

may

most popular: msp finale, tinn knowing all the words to gun's song <3

favorite: moonlight chicken, my first ever gifset and the reason i got into gifmaking because i wanted to capture the way moonlight chicken visually returned to locations and shots to underline its theme of loneliness being replaced by community, which is the mlc repetitions series

june

most popular & favorite: kiss me again (2018) and the lovely way june say's goodby to his friends (i learned how to add text to gifs for this one, and not only that but timed text! i thought it would get like 5 notes. it's very messy and doesn't look great, but i'm proud that i learned something with it, and i think its very funny and that's all that matters to me)

july

it's photoshop time now!! photoshop beloved you make such beautiful gifs and also you are So Slow and my computer cannot handle you.

most popular: only friends original trailer set

favorite: jimwen looking at each other set (the start of my most belovedest of series, the followup to the first ever meta i wrote)

august

most popular: part 1 of the can't i look at you edits, cool tones edition

favorite: part 2 of the can't i look at you edits, warm toned edition (i love them both but this has two of my all time favorite wen faces)

hey its my profile picture and also i find it very funny that the Os line up with his eyes, and the second gif i love how impossibly happy they look

september

my busiest month in terms of gifs, in large part due to only friends

most popular: topmew and fire

favorite: alanwen poetry edit i spent soooo long learning keyframes for the heartbeat effect and then the ghosting effect was a happy accident thank you person in the background walking past at the right moment

(i also love my charn laws of attraction set because he was a surprise favorite character this year, i loved collecting the quotes for how he speaks of himself)

october

most popular: only friends sandray finale parallel set (it is. very very close to 1k which is. so many).

favorite: he's coming to me edit because it was so fun to make for @dudeyuri

november

most popular: not me sean and black getting along super duper well!

favorite: moonlight chicken haunted house edit, accompanying this meta/creative writing thing. i loved choosing liminal feeling shots for it and i liked how the simple typography turned out

december

most popular: a little jim and wen set i am very fond of

favorite: the moonlight chicken new years set i posted today. i love this little chicken diner

hey look i managed to mention moonlight chicken almost every month (i swear, i watched so many favorite shows this year but i loved making mlc gifs so much)

and that's that! thanks for reading if anyone read til the end.

no pressure tags for some amazingly talented creators who have made some of my favorite sets this year (if you feel like talking about some of your highlights, whether monthly or not, because you all make so much incredible work and i'd love to hear about it) : @hoppipolla @sollucets @icouldhyperfixatehim @celestial-sapphicss @chinzhilla @krystaljungs @moonkhao and anyone who wants to, consider yourself tagged <3

#tag game #bl superlatives 2023 #rambling rambles #*mine #this was a fun retrospective! #thank you to all of the amazing creative people in this community that inspired me and taught me so much

[lastoneout]

hi idk if you're a huge kalos fan but how are you feeling about the direct

I haven't watched it yet, but ngl Kalos wasn't my favorite OR my least favorite pokemon game, I was pretty neutral on it overall. My main complaint was how annoying the map was to traverse before you got fly, but aside from that it was fine, introduced some cool pokemon and had a decent plot. Tbh for the next Legends game I would have preferred Jhoto, but eh. It's not a huge deal to me.

My real issue is that it's a little hard to get excited about it when I know how bad crunch is at Game Freak and that despite saying they were reevaluating their tight release cycle bcs like, ScarVi was borderline unplayable at launch and Arceus got abandoned the second they were done with it despite being the most popular game in years....I just have no faith that this game will be good, or at least it won't be anywhere near as good as it has the potential to be :/

I hope I'm proven wrong tho, and I don't think it's wrong to be excited about the game, something something no ethical consumption and I'd be a major hypocrite if I told people to drop any game company that has bad practices bcs almost all of them do, I just can't get hype. I was really, really hoping Game Freak would slow the hell down and stop making new games for a couple of years, put all of their focus on gen 10 and release that maybe in 2026 or 2027, but nope gotta make that money even if the games we release are falling apart at the seams and our devs are working on two or three projects at once.

And like, given the current trend in decreasing quality I'm genuinely unsure if the game is even going to be functional enough to be worth playing, especially since I figure to hit a 2025 release they probably started working on this right after Arceus came out, and there has simply not been enough time to make this game good. Plus there were a lot of points in ScarVi where I legit just wanted to put the game down and stop playing entirely bcs the graphics and glitches and framerate drops started to make me annoyed and dizzy, and once I was done with the main story I lost like all motivation to keep playing(I like finishing my dex, I did it in Sw/Sh and Let's Go and have almost done it in BDSP and Arceus, but I don't care about ScarVi's dex at all), and I haven't even bought the DLC yet. Tbh I'm probably not even gonna pre-order this, I'm waiting till it's out to decide if I want to buy it or not.

Anyway sorry to be a buzzkill, I don't fault anyone for being excited, I've loved Pokemon for more than half my life, it helped me meet my fiancé, it really means so SO much to me, so I get it, but like....I think I love the series too much to get excited for this. Seeing what Pokemon is turning into is just...painful and sad. I hope y'all enjoy it tho, and who knows, I could be wrong, maybe it will be fantastic and super polished and we can all breathe a sigh of relief bcs they got their shit together! That would be nice.

Edit: I do want to say I'm glad it has been 3 years instead of the usual 2, and I'm VERY glad they didn't announce gen 10, but unless the scope of this game is narrow as fuck and they also don't release until like November-December 2025 AND this team was NOT the same team who worked on ScarVi's DLC that is still not enough time to make a game with the scope they've been establishing as their new baseline. TOTK took SIX years to finish. Elden Ring's DLC was built on top of an existing game and it still took TWO whole years just to make it. Most open-world games take a really, really long time. Adding an extra year is great, but they need to be taking a lot longer than that between games. This is a step in the right direction, but it's not enough to inspire confidence.

#pokemon crit #most of the modern gaming industry gets by releasing a new huge game every like 6 years or so #and they're promising shit on the scope of TOTK or Elden Ring especially with that $60 price tag #I just don't think three years is enough time to make a game like that #especially especially since ScarVi's DLC literally JUST came out #and it was a big one

[putschki1969]

December 17: Kalafina Acitivities & Ambient Border -DAWN- Pre-Event Report

Tweet 1 & 2 by Hikaru | Instagram post by Hikaru

Finally have some time to sit down and post a little. I did tweet a few pictures here and there so if you follow me you will already know what I have been up to. But I have been feeling too exhausted to actually make proper posts. With such a busy schedule, it’s really no surprise that I keep falling into bed as soon as I get back to the hotel. Today was a more or less relaxed shopping day so I got back early.

After arriving in Japan on December 16 and having a pretty hectic first day, I spent December 17 doing a ton of Kalafina-related stuff. Was wearing a HiKei-inspired outfit to match the occasion and of course I brought my Cakey-beret which I won during her fan club lottery. Feels so nice to wear it here in Japan.

A fellow Kalafina-fan was kind enough to accompany me on some of my Kalafina activities. I get lost quite easily so I am always grateful to have someone around who knows the area.

Kalafina Pinky Ring: FINALLY!! I have been waiting for this opportunity FOREVER! The ring is so much prettier than the one they came up with for their 10th Anniversary. Also, they actually wore this themselves. Quite religiously back then. Keiko wears hers regularly up until this day! The other day Hikaru also wore it for Keiko’s birthday live broadcast. I am sure Wakana still owns hers as well.I have always wanted this ring but in the past I was too stingy and then the pandemic happened and I really didn’t wanna order something this pricey online. So yeah, first thing on my list was the AHKAH store. Best Christmas present ever! Is it weird that I kinda feel married to them now? XD Haha, okay, maybe “married” is not the right word. Oh well.I guess you could say that I am feeling a very strong connection now. Even stronger than before.

PIERRE HERMÉ cake: We all know that Hikaru surprised Keiko with a special chocolate cake on her birthday. It was actually quite easy to figure out where she got it from so of course I had to get one. It’s affordable and pretty small so I was able to finish it within a few days. Since it was a special limited Christmas edition, it tasted a LOT like Christmas. Very gingerbread-y with a hint of jam. Delicious!

Meguro River: I’ve never actually been to Meguro river so I thought I’d check out some of the spots that Hikaru had visited. One day I wanna see the cherry blossoms. I kinda regret not coming at night because there seems to be some sort of nice illumination thingy going on there...Oh well...maybe next time.

Ambient Border -DAWN-: Still can’t believe how easy it was to get a ticket for this. Was a bit intimidated by the TIGET service at first but it turned out to be quite convenient. Simple payment and you get a digital ticket. Had no issues with it. Seems like it was on a first-come-first-serve basis because depending on how early you bought your ticket the lower your number was. People were then allowed to enter the venue in order of their number to find a good spot. Thank God they provided chairs! Wouldn’t have liked standing for this event. Anyway, my number was 41 and I ended up on an aisle seat a few rows away from the stage. Pretty much had a clear view. I chose the Christmas ticket so I got a little A4-sized character card as present. Also bought the pamphlet since I hadn’t ordered that online (only got the Asebi bromides back then). The event started with Hikaru’s Ambient Border and OMG, seeing her in real life again for the first time in THREE years almost killed me. I quite literally teared up. To get an up-close view of her in such a tiny venue while she was wearing this super sexy cyber-punk outfit, I mean, who wouldn’t have combusted at that?! Hikaru sounded great and I was happy to finally hear the song live (it’s one of my faves from her album). Also made sure to buy the special Hikaru drink ^_^ It was a fruity ice-tea so thankfully something I was able to enjoy. After Hikaru, Yuki Sasaki sang his song for the the play and that concluded the first live corner. We pretty much transitioned right away to the two Q&A corners. The cast of the play is way too big so they had to separate the group. During the first set Hikaru was on stage together with a bunch of the other cast members (including Yuki Sasaki and Marina Hamada - I feel like their stories will be quite tightly interwoven which is also why they are singing the insert song “Under the Rain” together but more on that later). The mods had a little box from which everyone got to pick two short questions. It was mostly play-related stuff but I loved how carefree everyone was. I’ve actually never seen Hikaru like this on stage. Usually it takes her a while to warm up to her surrounding and most of the time she is a bit nervous or reserved but among this group of nerds she seems to feel 100% at home. She was clowning around with everyone as if she had known them forever. Super precious. Won’t lie, the second section of the Q&A and the prologue act for Ambient Border dragged a bit because Hikaru wasn’t involved in those but overall they were interesting and got me quite hyped for the play. I REALLY hope we’ll get a broadcast just like we did with her first play. They finished the event with another live corner. First Marina Hamada performed her solo song and then she was joined on stage to reveal a brand new insert song called “Under the Rain”. It’s a collab with Hikaru and Yuki Sasaki. All three got to sing a verse and then they all sang the chorus together. The verses are really lovely, the chorus is just okay I guess. I wonder if this song will ever get an official release. There was some talk about a CD but they didn’t really make an official announcement. Honestly, a CD for the entire play would be neat.

I really regret not getting a ticket for the evening show as well just to see and hear a bit more of Hikaru but then again, it was probably a good thing because jet lag would have kicked my ass sooner rather than later.

#kalafina #hikaru #report #ambient border #ambient border dawn #TRIGGER #kalafina pinky ring #kalafina pinkie ring #hikei #personal #long text post

[zarvasace]

PROGRESS POST

(10/4/23)

This is partly for accountability and partly just to get all this out of my head! This last month or two have felt so hectic, getting used to a new work and sleep schedule and all. I'm still not quite there.

If you're curious about what I've been working on and what my plans are in terms of writing and art for the rest of the year, read on. :)

I will say, though, that if you want more of a specific AU or story, the way to get it is by asking questions and leaving comments! Asks and comments remind me about things I'm doing and get me excited about them again! I have these plans, but I also am very good at chasing inspiration to unknown (and sometimes unimportant) corners!

By Fandom

Linked Universe Projects

I've been feeling less motivated to work on LU stuff, but I still plan on at least finishing what I have open, so you can look forward to some of that!

Writing

Disability AU—one small mobility trio fic in the works. A few vague ideas for doing backstory fics.

Council (1931 vampire AU)—this is still the "backburner to backburner" fic, but I do have some fun ideas. I just have been distracted with other things! I think this AU is a lot of fun and I'd love to do more with it. We'll have to see.

The Marvelous Misadventures of Wind and His Merry Band of Maybe-Human Misfits—chapter 7 (out of 9 or so) is in progress. I have it all outlined out, and it's fun to work on, but I have (again) been distracted! This is, I hope, going to be my main December project. It'd be nice to finish before it turns 2 years old next summer. Oops.

I have several other WIPs that aren't very exciting and probably won't see daylight, but they're there if I feel like them

Art

Coloring book—I'm part of the coloring book project! :) I have already finished 1/2 drawings, and they went so well, I'm considering doing more.

Shatterproof manga page—still on my radar! I'm doing the end scene from dazzling diamond danger, and my ambition keeps outgrowing my time.

Four Swords Projects

Writing

Fairytale AU—man I've started this Vidow BatB fic literally five times. I have an almost-complete draft sitting at like... 20k?? iirc, but I kind of hate a lot of it. I also like a lot of it. It's a bit difficult for me to work on rewriting something in that situation. Anyway. Another December thing probably.

Fright Fight—I have ideas for every week, but am currently unsure if I want to draw or write for them. Most of my October will be focused on filling these prompts!

Vampire Lords AU—I have strange as severe is this my fate open right now, with a fair amount of material... it just needs to be edited a bit. I do want to keep working on that, I've just... well. Distraction. A common theme. XD I might be feeling another little bite fic coming on, too.

Art

Fright Fight—see above

Fright Fight part 2—I have a few side things to do for this, like making graphics that I haven't quite finished yet. They shouldn't take long, I just gotta do em!

Non-Fandom

Stickers—I am in the process of drawing some stickers! Yay! These are for my work, but also just for me. I want some Halloween stickers. This is a backburner project.

Nanowrimo project—I need to spend some time figuring out a few things to really get going on my princess-verse. I'm going to be doing Nanolympics this year, so hopefully some of their preptober stuff will help!

Hearts Linked Together—my super-cool Linkverse. XD I love my dumb timeline, and all the characters, they're just filler drawings that I haven't had time to continue.

Secret Zelda project—I really really need to do this! I can't say much right now, but it involves a fair amount of work, both writing and art. I think I haven't gotten very far on it yet because I'm intimidated. Stop that.

Zine edits—I worked really really hard on an art piece for a LoZ zine coming up! This week is critique, and I anticipate a few edits later.

By Month

Facebook posts—a lady I know wants to commission pretty quote images to post on her Facebook. I need to reply to her text. And do them.

September

I primarily worked on the fic Blood-Sucker's Guide to High School. I also worked on and submitted one fic and one piece of art to two different zines, which I hope you'll see soon.

October

If you care, you may have noticed I'm not doing Whumptober this year! Part of this is because I'm a bit burned out from the above, and part of it is that the prompts just didn't seem very inspiring to me this year. Maybe that's just my mindset. I haven't been in a very whumpy mood.

I'm planning on filling weekly prompts for @fsfrightfight this month and maybe chipping away at some other fics, in addition to one more zine contribution. I'm also going to be planning for November and doing some scattered art work here and there.

November

NaNoWriMo! I considered skipping this... but I'm feeling really inspired and motivated to do it, especially with October as a break. I'm going to write some original work, and that will be the focus of my November. I'll likely get some other art done, too.

December

I hope to dedicate this month to finishing things up from this year! That means working on "backburner" projects.

#i speak from the coffin

[dreamingcloudie]

✨️Holidays With You✨️

🎄🎉 100+ Followers Special Event!🎉🎄

✎ Dottore x GN/Fem!Reader Christmas Prompt list~

Deadline for sending asks: December 31st

Since we've reached 100+ followers and it's almost Christmas. I've decided to do something for it!

(Might as well turn this into a blog dedicated to Dottore at this point /j)

This is my first time doing this so I'm sorry if I'm not doing this right :')

Here's a list of prompts that I've made myself. I originally wanted to make 100 of them. But because I'm sick rn I wasn't able to think much with my brain 💀 I'll have to settle for 50. I hope that's enough-- (Edit: added 15 more to the list!)

I tried to make this as Christmasy as possible. Hope I didn't disappoint lol.

Rules:

1. You can choose only up to 3 prompts per ask!

2. You can send them via ask!

3. Please note that it might take me a long time to complete them (due to some personal issues.)

4. It is not garanteed that I'll be able to do yours, no hard feelings.

5. I only write for GN or Fem Reader. I'll use GN Reader as default if not specified.

6. no nsfw(suggestive is fine)/gore/anything hateful towards anyone or any community/etc.

Prompt list:

Note: You can also add specific scenarios along with the prompt(s) you choose if you want to!

#1 - “Love, you're freezing.”

#2 - “Hey, this snowman has your eyes!"

#3 - “You’re weird… but fine. I’ll share my scarf with you.”

#4 - “One bowl of hot steamy soup coming right up.”

#5 - “Get in the blankets with me.”

#6 - “You made this yourself?”

#7 - "There’s chocolate on your face, silly.”

#8 - “I already have you, my greatest present.”

#9 - “Did you steal my coat?”

#10 - “You look adorable in it.”

#11 - “Are you cold? Come here.”

#12 - “Here let me warm you up.”

#13 - “I don’t need any gifts.”

#14 - “Let’s decorate this tree together.”

#15 - "I don't like holidays... But I suppose they're alright when I'm with you."

#16 - "How can I not stare when you look so nice like this?"

#17 - “Careful not to slip now.”

#18 - “Here, I knitted this sweater for you.”

#19 - “I’m sorry I didn’t prepare anything for you…”

#20 - “Why buy ornaments when you can make them?”

#21 - “You look so cute in my arms.”

#22 - “This is a gift that I’ll treasure for the rest of my life.”

#23 - “You got a snowflake on your nose.”

#24 - “Let’s go skating!”

#25 - “Let me hoist you up so you can put the star at the top.”

#26 - “Here, hold my hand.”

#27 - “We should stay in bed for a little longer.”

#28 - “Only you can make me feel like this.”

#29 - “The cookies are still hot so don’t touch them!”

#30 - “Spend Christmas with me, please?”

#31 - “Let’s go out into the snow!”

#32 - “You’ve missed me? Good, because I’ve missed you too.”

#33 - “You hear that? That’s my heart beating for you.”

#34 - “Hoho, your Santa is here.”

#35 - “You’re so silly and I love that a lot.”

#36 - “Darling, why didn’t you tell me you feel cold?”

#37 - “I love seeing you smile. You should do that more.”

#38 - “It’s ugly, but I love it.”

#39 - “Maybe taking a day off today wasn’t so bad.”

#40 - “Hmph, my face is red only because it’s freezing outside. Don’t think much of it.”

#41 - “I’ll only stop kissing you when I deem that you’re warm enough.”

#42 - “I got you a little something. It’s not much but I hope you’ll like it anyway.”

#43 - “Careful, it’s still hot.”

#44 - “Why don’t we dance for a while?”

#45 - “You’re so pretty…”

#46 - “I love seeing you flustered.”

#47 - “Is something burning?”

#48 - “To be able to spend every day like this with you… is not something I object to.”

#49 - "I have a wish only you could make it come true."

#50 - “Don't laugh, I'm a scientist. Not a baker."

#51 - "Who needs a fireplace when I have you."

#52 - "Your cooking isn't bad for a scientist."

#53 - "Hug me, please."

#54 - "Stand still and just let me hold you."

#55 - "I can't reach up there. Can you lift me up?"

#56 - "It's okay, we still have this, uh, whatever this is for when the food is burnt… which is now."

#57 - "Hey, look over to this Kamera real quick. I need a photo of you so I can show Santa what I want this year."

#58 - "Oh look, we're under a mistletoe."

#59 - "You, is all that I want."

#60 - "Don't be a fool. Santa is not real; I am though."

#61 - "What are you doing? Put that snowball down– mph!"

#62 - "Shopping for you is hard!"

#63 - "Don't put that ridiculous hat on me."

#64 - "Is that what you wish for? I'll make it come true for you then."

#65 - "Don't be shy, look at me."

#genshin impact #genshin x reader #genshin impact x you #genshin x you #genshin x yn #dottore #dottore x reader #dottore x y/n #dottore x you #genshin dottore #100 followers special event #merry Christmas everyone ♡

[twinkleallnight]

Hii 😍

I saw these pics for fall and thought of you. Maybe they’ll inspire a fic or an edit. Whatever your feel most comfortable with (no pressure 🥰)

I know it's almost Christmas and I promised this one just "tomorrow" ( that was a week ago) but as suggested by few it's fall technically till 19 December and half of earth is still living in that date zone, here's this lovely ask , before it's too- too late.

Thank you @peonierose for these autumn pics that made me churn out a fluff with my OTP.

Previously the things that happened are mentioned in this fic I am thankful for... and Lilith's birth happened in the fic - the Nevrakis-Walker Christmas

It's Fall Y'all...

Book: TRR AU

Characters: Drake x Olivia and their daughter Lilith, Riley and her daughter Eleanor, Bianca. Mentioned: Liam, Maxwell.

Word count: 1,547

Disclaimer: All characters belong to pixelberry except Lilith

Rating: teens

Warning: fluff

Prompt:

1. prompt day 19 , take me home, by @choicesdecemberchallenge2022

2. your OTP takes a holiday trip. Holiday prompts @choicesficwriterscreations

3. Prompt 84. “You said not to buy you any gifts, so I made you one instead.” @choicesflashfics holiday prompt

4. Prompt 3 by @choicesflashfics “Ok, this whole thing you’re doing? I’m gonna need you to stop."

The azure of the sky was speckled with fluff of the white clouds. The winds were calm and often let out a soft breath in the form of a breeze. The trees seemed to be changing their dresses in a shade brighter than last month’s.

On such a pleasant day, Drake was rocking softly in a hammock, tied between the two trees that stood on the way to the barn. The usually quiet ranch home was bustling with activities, this time of the year. The Cordonian royal family was on their annual trip to Texas along with Drake’s family. A feeling of bliss ran through his veins as he looked at all of them.

His mother, Bianca sat nearby on a picnic table knitting a sweater. His wife, Olivia was busy taming the fiery red mane of their daughter, Lilith and his best friend’s wife Riley was entangled with her daughter’s golden curls.

He took a deep breath and focused back on reading Maxwell’s latest release.

A week ago...

{ “You are seriously going to spend time reading this?” Olivia had asked him when they had packed their bags in Lythikos.

“I am curious to read what he has written about our children. I let him be when he wrote a one-sided story about us but I won’t let him do that to my kido.”

“What will you do?” Olivia had raised an eyebrow, challenging him.

“ I… I…I will tell you. You can handle that Beaumont better than me.”

Olivia threw a pillow at him. “Such a marshmallow!”

Drake had just smiled. He knew, the presence of his daughter in his life had mellowed him down so much. }

Now…

He was half way through the story of the Royal heir and it felt a nice walk down the memory lane, as he read about the shenanigans of their little ones described in the book.

A sudden babbling around the picnic table caught his attention. He knew the girls were getting ready for the evening fire pit party, but this time it was his mother’s turn to dress up, it seemed.

Bianca was protesting, squeezed in between Lilith and Eleanor. Her hands were pinned down by both the girls who were engrossed in colouring the nails of her wrinkled hands.

“Girls, I seriously feel this is not a good idea.” Bianca said the umpteenth time.

“Shhh”, Lilith seated to her right, reacted.

Bianca shut her eyes, “This is going to be so awkward. “Ellie,” She coaxed Riley’s daughter seated to her left, “You are the wise one. Can you not reason?” Eleanor just giggled and concentrated back at the work in hand.

Bianca gave a pleading look to Olivia and Riley sitting in front of her but they shrugged and continued scrolling through their cell phones.

“Drake!” She called out to her last resort.

“Have fun, mom!” He replied.

“No use.” Bianca gave out a heavy sigh. She had not indulged in any such girlie acts for years. ‘Since Jackson’ she thought. And now she had to give in to the persistence of the young girls.

Riley and Olivia went to the kitchen to get some snacks. By the time they came back Bianca’s nails were painted bright.

Lilith squealed. “Grandma, isn’t it a beautiful piece of art?”

Before Bianca could respond, Eleanor sitting on the other side affirmed, “It surely is.”

Lilith lifted her arms in excitement, “You are getting ready for Ellie and Lily’s party tonight!”

“For which, we still have few things to arrange.” Reminded Eleanor.

“Oh yes, excuse us please.” Lilith got up. “We need to catch hold of Uncle Liam for our next plan.”

“He is almost done with his meeting. You can meet him upstairs.” Riley informed them.

Lilith pulled Eleanor along with her as they rushed to the house.

“Bye, Uncle Drake.” Eleanor waved.

“Bye Dad!” Lilith screamed.

“See you soon.” Drake waved at them and walked down to join the rest of the ladies at the picnic table, sitting next to his mother.

Bianca rolled her eyes and smiled at their retreating figures, “She never gets tired, does she?”

“And she loves to party.” Drake dismissed.

“Unlike you two.” Riley moved her finger between Drake and Olivia.

“I wonder where she got it from?” Bianca pondered.

“Oh, you don’t know? She was conceived in Maxwell’s library.” Riley snickered.

Olivia glared at Riley while Drake looked away in embarrassment.

“That’s a ridiculous reason. Bianca made light of it, “Anyways, I love how these girls bring all the brightness and joy to my otherwise quiet home. I am thankful to all of you for spending fall with me here, every year. I don’t know what I would do without you.” Her eyes welled up.

Drake reached out to hold her hand and comfort her.

Riley assured her, “Aww, believe me, I and Liam look forward to this time of the year. It’s a nice break from the Cordonian court and a much needed family time for us.”

Bianca dabbed her eyes with her free hand.

“Mom?” Drake sought her attention, still holding and observing her right hand. “Your hands are looking so pretty with this colour. He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed.”

Amidst the tears, Bianca laughed and retrieved her hand from his to slap his shoulder.

“Let’s eat.” Olivia tried to distract them. She preferred giving a blind eye to the emotional moments.

The four of them settled down around the table to munch on some Nachos. As they were eating, they discussed their plans for the evening.

“Olivia, what’s on your menu ?” Riley asked.

“Chicken fried steak, Drake’s barbeque ribs, pecan pie…”

“I love the pie you make, Olivia” Bianca chimed in.

Drake and Olivia exchanged a knowing look, some old memories replaying in their eyes.

“When you make it everyday, you achieve that perfection.” Riley stated.

“Everyday? Why would Olivia make pie everyday?” Bianca gave them both a puzzled look while Olivia tried to elbow Riley.

But Riley seemed to be in an elated mood as she explained further. “The Thanksgiving, a year before their wedding, Olivia burnt down the whole kitchen, trying to cook for Drake.”

Bianca gasped and Olivia covered her face with her hand. Drake grimaced helplessly. ‘What’s wrong with you Riley?’ he thought. He knew Olivia won’t like the details spoken out. But what came next surprised him too.

“She decided to make pie every single day for the next 21 days.”

“Really?” Drake and Bianca asked in unison.

“But why?” Bianca questioned again.

Olivia understood that there was no backing off now. She sighed before revealing, “I read somewhere that if you repeat anything for 21 days, the habit gets well ingrained. I didn’t want to repeat my mistakes.

“Oh dear” Bianca sympathized.

Drake got up to sit besides her. He gave her a hug, “I am proud of you wifey. I wish you included me for those 21 days too. I can never get enough of your culinary skills.” He kissed her hair and gave Riley a stare.

“What was that for?” Riley asked innocently.

Drake retorted, “Ok, this whole thing you’re doing? I’m gonna need you to stop. Do you realize, you are acting a lot like Maxwell today?

Bianca commanded, “Stop nudging her, Drake. She is just sharing those childhood memories one has. They are always a bit funny for everyone to hear.”

“Yeah, and a tad embarrassing for the grown up child.” Drake fussed.

Olivia placed her hand on Drake’s thigh and he looked at her. It was her silent way of saying, ‘let it go.’ He smiled at her and leaned down to leave a peck on her cheek.

“Olivia,” Bianca grabbed their attention, “I have something for you.” She dug in her bag of yarn balls to pull out and place a pair of neatly knitted socks on the table. “You said not to buy you any gifts, so I made you one instead.”

Olivia kept looking at her dumbfounded.

“Mom, I hope you remember that Olivia is from Lythikos? More than her, your poor son needs all the wool to survive the Lythikan winters.” Drake made a puppy face.

Bianca waved off Drake with a smile and continued, “I had thought of giving it to you later, but this seems to be the right time. Give me your hands.”

Olivia stretched out her arms. Bianca placed the socks in her open palms and rested her hands over them.

“Olivia, you refined my son into a fine man. You gave me a beautiful granddaughter and you brought us all together. As a woman, I know what it takes to build up a cozy little family. Hope this pair of socks keeps you warm on those awful days when nothing seems to go right and reminds you that you will always be right.”

Olivia was definitely not prepared for this. She felt the moistness in her eyes and feared that it would spill over the brim. She just looked down at the socks in her hands and Bianca’s hands over them. “You know that nail colour looks really beautiful on you.”

Bianca swatted on her hands and they all laughed together.

Tags: @3pawandme @alj4890 @angelasscribbles @bascmve01 @bebepac @busywoman @dcbbw @gkittylove99 @harleybeaumont @iaminlovewithtrr @karahalloway @kingliam2019 @lovingchoices14 @nestledonthaveone @neotericthemis @mom2000aggie @phoenixrising0308 @princess-geek @riseandshinelittleblossom @secretaryunpaid @sfb123 @sillydg @tessa-liam @tinkie1973 @txemrn @walkerdrakewalker @yourmajesty09

#cfwc holidays 2022 #choices december challenge 2022 #trr fandom #drake walker #olivia nevrakis #the royal romance #trr #playchoices #pixelberry #twinkleallnight #holiday

[various-things]

This is a little retrospective on things I made in 2023

Fic and video edits (mostly the latter, not counting clip compilations). Because slow progress is progress and it's nice to look at it all together. Putting this under a readmore since it's going to be long.

Video edits:

January: Julian x Garak: I Wanna Be Yours (Star Trek: DS9) This was a very simple edit I made in like a day (most complex edits take me a very long time; I'm a slow editor). The song doesn't fit my headcanon for them very strongly but it was fun, I'm just gonna quote part of what what I said in the description on YT "I really enjoy moments in my edits/making edits that focus on where characters get to kind of exist in contexts/settings/we can spend some time as a viewer in the moment with them." March: A lot of these I was working on wellll before March, the two succession vids are based on S3 stuff. Kendall Roy: Elijah (Succession) (mind the content warnings on this one) I actually think this is one of the best edits I've ever made and I'm quite proud of it overall. I would have liked to have done a better job of balancing the audio of Kendall's dialogue but otherwise I'm really pleased with it. Julian x Garak: Stay Soft (Star Trek: DS9) First finished more-complex garashir edit! I'm overall pretty happy with it. ✨🪩 pain 🪩 ✨ Roman Roy: The Metronome (Succession) (mind the content warnings) Quite happy with this one as well. I think a big reason that I tend to like my Succession edits so much (I think they're probably my best work) is just how good the cinematography of the show is and how much I vibe with it. April: Julian x Garak: Plans (Star Trek: DS9) (mind the cws) Bloc Party <3 Quoting how I described it in the tumblr post "I’ve got like a lot of thoughts about it but it’s broadly about like… violence and sacrifice and what people are capable of, ways people misunderstand Julian, and Garak and Julian’s friendship." I missed a frame of a following shot at one point, alas, but this was a fun very-dense with dialogue and lyrics one. June:

Tom x Shiv: Heat Lightning (Succession) More Mitski! (I have two other DS9 Mitski WIPs also) Like the quote above where I mention characters existing in contexts and settings, this really feels like a peak of me doing that for me, it's mostly them sitting/lying down/standing quietly and not being happy. Also did some juxtaposition against shots without people in it. Quite pleased with it.

August: Shax fancam (Good Omens) I did this in Final cut and Oh the effort into making those transitions happen. Here's the version on tiktok but I uh... the captions did not turn out well but they are synced to the audio. Aziraphale x Crowley: De Selby (1) (Good Omens) I made this one quite quickly as well, in under 2 days I think. Overall pretty happy with it except for the fact that I had a lot of trouble with the audio levels and I think re: overall structure of the edit that it lost some of its oomph towards the end, but I don't really know what I would have done differently with the latter. Some of the transitions in this were fairly complex and I'm mostly happy with them. The YouTube version unfortunately is pretty... artifact-y? November: I got Capcut sometime in the fall. Everything from here on out that I've posted this year has been made in that. Still vastly prefer Final Cut if I don't need fancy transitions, but harddrives and needing to update things etc. I'm also not putting anything else on YouTube until I finish my brightness edits. These two juxtaposition-y popular tiktok sound edits. (1) (2) (Star Trek: DS9) Quark bottom edit (18+) (Star Trek: DS9) - Very pleased with this. December: All of these were made pretty quickly (by my standards). a garashir edit to "Atlantis" by Seafret (Star Trek: DS9) Mostly made this out of wanting to finish something and the cuts feel a bit too fast for me but hey the act of creation! a short murder-y Garak phonk edit to BRODYAGA FUNK by Eternxlkz Mostly pleased with this. Still getting the hang of various transition things. a garashir edit to Placebo's "Running up that Hill" the text animation is kind of a mess (even on the version without the lyrics the captions are too big—I'm still figuring out caption size stuff re: what to choose) which is a shame, but I do like some of the clip timings (though some others don't quite work for me and I would have liked the cuts to have been a bit smoother in some places) and also hey made and finished something

Fic

Tuscany and New York (Succession) - [fic abandoned/not to be completed] Started this one and then chose not to finish it. However, one thing I was really enthused by was seeing part of an argument I wrote have a big parallel with what ended up in a scene on the actual show in S4. Felt very affirming re: my understanding of the characters.

with hope in your hands (Star Trek: DS9 [WIP] This is a fic I started as part of ectogeo's Garashir Wedding Registry. It's kind of a (mostly) Julian POV of the events in the continuity where ASIT/The Nexus/The Calling happened but it's also a reflection on some of Julian's closer relationships and where things related to marriage/possibilities of marriage came up within some of that. I'm currently almost done with chapter 4. 1: (Star Trek: DS9)

I think my lack of titles here and this standalone fic's place within a series probably has affected how likely folks are to read it but it's a short fic that is mostly Garak on the Defiant after it leaves Cardassia in Second Skin. Initially put most of this on tumblr but then properly put it on ao3.

2/3 ficlets for the rare pare ficlet game hellostuffedtiger made: Garak/Sloan, Julian/Picard

#video edits #fic

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, December 13

SPIKE: “What’s this? Sitting around watching the telly while there’s evil still a foot. (Turns the TV off) That’s not very industrious of you. I say we go out there. - What, can’t go without your Buffy, is that it? Too chicken? Let’s find her! She is the Chosen One after all. – Come on! Vampires! Grrr! Nasty! Let’s annihilate them. For justice - and for - the safety of puppies – and Christmas, right? Let’s fight that evil! - Let’s kill something!

~~BtVS 4x11 “Doomed”~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Torn (Buffy, Angel,PG) by badly_knitted

Evil Corporations Ahoy (Xander, Assassin's Creed xover, T) by madimpossibledreamer

Doctor Dawn (Buffy, Dawn, T) by ialwayscomewhenyoucall

Secret (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by DarkVoid116

Waking Up In Vegas (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by MillennialCryBaby

Sugar (Buffy/Spike, PG) by honeygirl51885

The Merry Month of Magnus Presents... Light the Candles (Buffy/Spike, G) by Julikobold

Nice (Buffy/Spike, G) by honeygirl51885

[Chaptered Fiction]

Breathe Again, Chapter 17/17 Complete! (Angel/Cordelia, M) by Califi62

Days of Future Past, Chapter 34/34 Complete! (Buffy/OC, Angel/OC, Buffy/Angel, M) by a2zmom

Blood and Chaos, Chapter 67 (Amy, M) by Aetheron, quote_Amy_unquote (Sannah_banana)

Swimming Against the Current, Chapter 5 (Buffy/Gage, T) by dwinchester

New York, Chapter 33/43 (Giles/Xander, M) by drsquidlove

[French language] Les deux Phénix, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Faith, M) by FridayQueen

Advent Calendiles, Chapter 13 (Giles/Jenny, G) by HAL1500

Shadow Over Hellmouth, Chapter 67 (Buffy/Tara, Ensemble, M) by Tuxedo Mark

[French language] Do as Romans do, Chapter 9 (Dawn/Spike, T) by OldGirl-NoraArlani

Twice Broken, Thrice Burnt, Chapter 22 Complete! (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by ClowniestLivEver

Dress, Chapters 1-2 Complete! (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by scratchmeout

Poems in A Minor, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, R) by all_choseny

The Mayor Dates, Chapter 5 (Buffy/Spike, PG) by Desicat

Spuffy's Little Helper, Chapter 13 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by Alyot

A Very Summers Winter, Chapter 13 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13) by VeroNyxK84

Dress, Chapters 1-2 Complete! (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) by scratchmeout

Poems in A Minor, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, R) by all_choseny

Blood and Dust, Chapter 9 (Buffy/Spike, M) by Blackoberst

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork: They are siblings btw(trust) (Willow, Spike, worksafe) by pzyii

Artwork: [Spike and Buffy hugging] (worksafe) by lialivingart

Artwork: ultimate wlw/mlm solidarity if u ask me (Willow, Oz, worksafe) by mistyintherivers

Artwork: I had so much fun playing with this art for Cornerofmadness’ slayer fic Deep Dark Sky for the wipbigbang (Dawn, Connor, drawn in bathing suits) by mindofmim

Artwork: girls night out (Tara, Willow, Buffy, Anya, worksafe) by spikedru

Artwork: willow (worksafe) by ournarrowslice

Moodboard: 365 characters; faith lehane (buffy the vampire slayer) (worksafe) by sylthrein

[Reviews & Recaps]

[Boom! comics] I finally got around to reading The Lost Summer and it is so good. by takaraphoenix

PODCAST: HELLMOUTH HOMOS: The Zeppo by Fear Queers

PODCAST: Episode 44: The Zeppo by Gym Was Cancelled

[In Search Of]

ISO: Looking for Dark!Angelus and/or Dark!Spike x Reader fanfics requested by taintedgenre

[Community Announcements]

We’ve now turned on response editing for the sign up form! by februaryfangfest

[Fandom Discussions]

[anti bangel meta] by yugiohio

I truly hope btvs does not get rebooted by reh-hateshumans

[anon ask] Is there more buffy the vampire slayer comic coming out? answered by buffythecomicslayer

Eternally obsessed with the claddagh ring scene in Buffy when Angel gives it to her by mayhemghost

[meta about Willow / Dark Willow] by girl4music

“Is it murder if the person deserved it? Warren deserved it. Rack deserved it.” — Erm… Yes. by girl4music

Thinking about when Willow was about to end the world out of grief and anger and Xander’s reaction by strawberrypuffmotherfucker

what I love about the buffyverse as a writer is that literally nothing’s off the table by vampswritings

I’m never gonna get over and therefore never gonna stop talking about how much I adore the compelling complexity of [Willow] by girl4music

The First and The Turok-han Invasion continued by garfan

Camden Toy RIP by multiple posters

Amy is so obnoxiously annoying in "The Killer Me" why is she jealous that Willow's friends were close to her again after season 6? continued by NoShip

Who else finds it very hard to watch the scene between Angel and Connor in 4x22? by JellyfishDry9464

First time watcher, up to season 3 - When should I start watching Angel? Will it be obvious in the show or no? by International_Half61

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

PUBLICATION: Camden Toy Succumbs to Pancreatic Cancer by SCIFI.radio

PUBLICATION: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel Actor Camden Toy Passes Away by SuperHeroHype

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Join the editor team :)

#ats #angel the series #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #fan art #fan fiction #meta

[mr-independent]

'its been a while bud,' you might be saying, 'whereve you been?'

Doing stuff. My life is busy as all hell lately, but hey at least i got a free neon yellow fitbit out of the deal. Ironically, yellow is one of my favourite colours and also one of the 2 (two) colours that i can't really see. Yes, I have tritanomaly. No, I don't understand how those two things can both be true, either.

Anyways it's Christmas in May, dear 4 followers that love these posts, so let's crack open a cold one for the boys and get right into it.

S2e4, Coach Santa:

-- why is Colin wearing a turkey hat? I thought that was an American Thanksgiving thing? (Edit: apparently people eat turkey on Xmas. I grew up so decolonized i asked my mom once why my friend Baz wore a t necklace when his name started with a B. Turns out it was a cross. All I know of Xmas comes from Santa depictions and Christmas themed tv show episodes lmao)

-- Isaac's Santa outfit is fucking Iconic

-- Keeley and the Diamond Dogs is such an underrated dynamic i love them so much

-- the immediate teamwork to put together the gift for Jamie is a cute little moment 🥰

-- the title callback to the weird claymation short thing is also a nice touch. Can you tell i love Xmas episodes bc i do. I'm also Jewish lol. And I love irony.

-- I keep forgetting Roy's sister is a surgeon. Also Sexy December 28th is hilarious, i really hope they stuck with it

-- what in the world is the Higgins kid doing with a surfboard in England???

-- the fact that nobody used to show up for Higgins Christmases until Ted showed up 🥰

-- the fact that Henry got his dad a dartboard, Ted's favourite thing to do with his own dad when he was Henry's age, hurts my heart

-- Everyone is wearing shoes indoors. Is that like. An English thing? Ted is too, is that also an American thing? I am. Horrified

-- 'this one is pre-cheekied' I love u Dani

-- Richard is like The French Stereotype and I love that for him lol

-- Roy is lactose intolerant and ate so much ice cream he shit his pants? Relatable king. Also his birthday was three weeks before christmas, making him a Sagittarius, for those so inclined to know

-- Dani and Zoreaux acting like they're gonna die in the trenches over a nerd gun war are such fucking nerds

-- how long, do y'all think, has Rebecca been doing this? I'd like to think it was a sneaky little tradition she hid from Rupert for years

-- 'theres two white people at the door and they're smiling' you go babe tell it like it is

-- look i get Keeley has long nails but pressing a doorbell with your whole palm is unhinged behaviour

-- 'let me fix my knee' *just fucking punches it into place* gotta say, Roy's getting more relatable by the minute. I too have fixed my janky knee by simply shoving it back into place

-- Keeley is wearing a crop top in December. Gotta love the commitment. Also Ussie guy has such long hair now wtf

-- gotta say i completely forgot Christmas Poppers were a thing. That's uh. Not what immediately comes to mind when someone uses the word poppers around me but hey that's just me

-- i forgot we so often get answers to our questions in this show. Rebecca has been doing this for years. I love when I'm right

-- Ted's 'right I'm the one with the accent here'... Ive lost track of how many times I've had that exact thought lmao

-- Love Actually! Good movie, love that Roy thought of that

-- Ted thinks singing is just talking an octave lower. Not surprising but funny nonetheless. And before you say it, yes i understand that was Jason Sudekis' solution to trying to sing in a different accent so he doesn't sound like Jason Sudekis but also. Adorable.

#ted lasso #teddy rewatches ted

[sunnyshiftyy]

Date - TE one shot

Book: The Elementalists (Book 1) (takes place before the pairing's together)

Pairing: Beckett Harrington x f!MC Elise Russel (not together yet but ~tension~)

Words: 3479

Rating: General

Summary: Shreya convinces Elise to go on a date with a random guy, and oopsies she spills the tea to Zeph and Beckett when Elise walks in on their study session in their common room.

TW: Probably cursing

A/N: Since this is my first piece of fanfic writing, i should clarify some points. 1) You may have noticed the f!MC is named Elise. It is because of TE, where i chose to name the MC Elise, that i use that nickname in my social media profiles. So, don't get it twisted. 2) I've decided to write this in third person and present tense for now. 3) I've built this world in my head in excruciating detail, so a lot of the side characters are my characters. In this piece in particular, Nathan. If you want to know more about my OC’s in my TE universe, click here. The main characters are not mine and belong to Pixelberry. 4) " are used for things that are said out loud, ' are used for specific thoughts. 5) English is not my first language, excuse the spelling and grammar mistakes! 6) My masterlist will be up soon, and will be linked in my bio and here (My Masterlist)

A/N 2: December 26th, 2022: Edit spelling and grammar.

Tags: @theclassycandy

Let me know if you want to be tagged in future fanfics or TE content!

And on that note, i hope you enjoy!

Elise hears voices getting louder as she approaches her common room door. Well, not voices. A voice.

"Three, Zeph, it says three!" The sassy tone tells her this probably isn't the first time she explained it in the past hour. As she steps through the door, Shreya immediately snaps her head up from Zeph’s worksheet and starts grinning widely. 

"Oh my Gods, she's back! How did it go on your date?!"

Elise’s face instantly scrunches up. The others don't know about this. Or at least, they didn't. She can't blame Shreya for blurting it out like this, since she never explicitly told her it was a secret. But, you know, you would expect your best friend to read your mind, so.. With Shreya’s words the guys’ interests are piqued, and Zeph and Beckett look up from their books. Zeph quickly chimes in,

"Wait, you went on a date?" Fantastic. Why doesn't he scream it even louder? In the hallway maybe?

"Ugh, Shrey..."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry.. Now spill!" She sits up excitedly, with that sparkle in her eyes she only has when she hears new gossip or sees pictures of cute cats. Either or. Elise's gears turn as she tries to think of any possible way out of this, but does it even matter now? She defeatedly walks up to the sofa and swings one leg on the backrest.

"It went good.. I guess," she sighs while untying her shoelaces.

"How good? Like, you like him good or..." Shrey’s hands make the 'Tell me more of the story, I need my drama fix'-motion. You would almost think she only set her best friend up on this date to talk about it after. It was probably at least half of the reason.

"He's cool. And nice. Too nice actually. He didn't let me pay my part of the bill."

"Who asked who?" Zeph asks. Elise presses her lips together and looks at him pleadingly. Oh my Gods, why is this so important? Shreya replies,

"He asked her."

"Well then he should pay." Her brown haired head bops back and forth between the two of them.

"That's what I'm saying!"

"Whatever, it was okay. And he's also not bad looking so... Yeah," Elise interjects, hoping to end this convo here. And for a small moment, no one says a thing. Okay, so that wor-

"Did you kiss him?" Shreya asks excitedly.

"What? No!" She takes a step forward, but then immediately composes herself again. For a second, there's a hint of a confused look on her face, that the others don't notice. She's taken aback by her own voice, as it came out loud and defensive.

"Aww, boo! You should've. He's hot."

"It's the first date!" Elise exclaims. Shrey dramatically rolls her eyes.

"Oh, screw the games and just go with the flow!"

"I don't play 'games', Shrey, I just didn't want to kiss him yet, jeez." Shreya sighs and calms down slightly.

"I'm sorry, I went a bit overboard with that.. I just want you to be happy and have fun."

"I know. And I appreciate that you care about me," she tries not to sigh. Elise takes a quick look at the coffee table. It's full of books, stationary and even Shreya's cauldron. The books are mostly Beckett's, since Shrey and Zeph each only have one book in front of them. She peers over Zeph's shoulder. The first sentence she can read out of his heavily used copy tells her exactly what they're doing.

"Studying potions i see?"

"Have been for the past two hours, but you're welcome to join!" he says, grinning. Shreya smiles in agreement, but Beckett has long put his head back down and is studying again. An awkward silence passes through the room, but only Elise seems to notice it.

"O..kay, I’m just going to change and get out my stuff then," she says, as she heads towards her bedroom. She opens up her closet door and stares right back at herself in the mirror she put in a few weeks ago. Her face is flushed, but her hair still looks as pristine as a few hours ago, when Shreya put it in bubble braids, with little gold rubber bands. Elise huffs. This is so stupid. Why did she even go on this date in the first place? She takes a deep breath, calming herself down, and grabs some leggings and a sweater out of the drawers. As she changes, she can't help but feel something gnawing at her. And she knows what it is, but she pretends she doesn't. It's easier like that.

Elise walks back into the room and sits down next to Beckett. She studies his face for a second, but quickly looks back down to open up her book. She doesn't know what she would have expected. A look? Any sort of movement? Making space for her stuff? But he just sits there, still, concentrated.

"I don't get this sentence, does anyone know what the hell it means?" Elise asks, trying to ease the tension. She makes a point to look at everyone. Shreya and Zeph lift up their head and Elise spins her book around so they can read. Shreya's eyes narrow to read the tiny font.

"No idea.." she says. Zeph searches frantically through the pages of his book.

"I think it means the grass needs to be dried for 4 days.. upside down?" His uncertain tone is directed towards Beckett, who's still conveniently really focused on this -in Elises opinion- very unclear and useless chapter. Only when they all look at him, he looks up at Zeph.

"Yeah," he says, slightly annoyed. And as quickly as he responded his head is back down again.

"Well, that mystery is solved!" Zeph smiles enthusiastically, still oblivious to the weird vibe in the room. Maybe Elise's the only one thinking this is awkward? She responds,

"Sure.. thanks. Oh and also, um, does this mean red or orange cause it never sa-" Suddenly, there's a harsh sigh coming from the left of the coffee table.

"I will need to take my leave, thanks for having me, Shreya. Zeph," Beckett states, as he looks around the table, his gaze pausing as it falls on Elise’s face. He hesitates.

"...Elise.." He swiftly breaks eye contact, packs up his many books and speed walks out of the door. The three of them are still staring at the dark oak-wooden door in an unsettling moment of silence as it falls closed.

"That was weird," Shreya comments, strangely unbothered. Zeph quirks an eyebrow at her.

"Even for Beckett," she clarifies. Elise feels the little gnawing thing in the pit of her stomach getting bigger.

"I think it’s my fault? I don't know, he just seemed so.. mad? At me?" she gets out. Shreya shakes her head.

"You didn't do anything, hun, you weren't even here for most of the time." Elise nods and looks back at her work. This study session probably isn't going to be as productive as she originally thought.

"Maybe he's mad cause his favourite study buddy wasn't here?" Zeph laughs.

"Hey, I showed up!" Elise defends herself. Not that it really matters. It's not like they invited her or even let her know this was happening. Why is she even stressing over this? Shreya waves his comment away.

"Nonsense, maybe he just had a bad day."

"Maybe..." Elise mumbles. She tries to refocus on the letters in front of her, pushing the excessive thoughts out of her head. She'll talk to him later.

Thirty minutes later, Zeph thuds his book closed. "I'm done with this for today," he sighs, crossing his arms in front of him and defeatedly laying down his head. Potions is a notoriously hard part of Natural Studies, and especially at Penderghast. Zeph doesn't get how some people just get this stuff by reading it once, and even get A's on the practical. He has been doing better as of lately, mainly because of the help of Shreya and Beckett, who somehow are really good at potions. He's not at all surprised Beckett's good at it, but he should've known that running an actual business based on potion making makes one quite an expert. Shreya lays a hand on his arm.

"It's okay, you worked pretty damn hard today," she comforts him. An idea strikes her. She tries to not let her face betray her as a mischievous grin crosses her expression for just a second.

"Aahh!" Zeph shouts, and he bounds up like lightning. Elise startles with the sudden yelp. "Shrey! Don't do that!" He rubs over his left wrist with a pout on his face. Shreya laughs.

"It looked like you could use some energy..," she says smugly, "And I delivered." She holds her hand up and lets little bright lines spark between her fingers. She looks at Elise, wiggling her eyebrows.

"As long as you don't do that to me," Elise laughs, packing up her stuff.

"Can't promise that. If you ever fall asleep in my lesson.."

"If you show up as TA in my next metal spell class I am leaving the room!" Zeph exclaims.

"Oh, shut it, you big baby, it wasn't that bad. And I'm never going to be a TA, no thank you. I'm drowning in responsibilities already," she almost sighs, thinking back to all the errands she still needs to run. "That reminds me, I have to go to Penn Square to get some ingredients for Serene and Sublime. Anyone want to come with me?" She says, while opening her compact mirror.

"I'll go! I deserve food after this torture called studying," Zeph says, suddenly very energetic again. He stands up just as Shreya’s eyes widen.

"Oh my Gods, I'm going to be late!" Shreya quickly snaps the ornately detailed sides together and pockets it, hurriedly sliding together all her papers. Why do stores have to close this early?

"Don't worry about it, I'll pack up your stuff. Just go get you ingredients!" Elise offers. Shreya nods thankfully. "Thanks, you're the best! Let's go, Zeph!"

"Coming! Bye Elise!" he yells as they step through the portal.

"Bye," she murmurs. She stacks the books and sheets neatly together, and stands up, walking her own things back to her room. Should she go talk to Beckett? He was acting very weird. Screw it, who is she kidding? This is also about her feelings towards this situation. She wants to talk to him, to explain it to him. She would've never gone on that date if Shreya didn't insist on it. Face downcast, she organizes her books in the spacious wooden drawers of her desk and plops down on the chair. A few seconds of silence go by. Even thoughts stay away. The soft ticking of the dark blue rimmed alarm clock makes her feel at peace. Then, she takes a deep breath and stands up. Procrastinating is only going to make it worse. She puts on her sneakers and walks out of her dorm, towards Beckett’s.

Not even 5 seconds after she knocked, the door to Beckett’s common room swings open. A blond, slender guy in the door frame looks at her in surprise.

"Yes?" His eyes look her over before the recognition flicks across them. "Oh, hey!" He holds the door handle as he leans on the other hand.

"Hi! You're Nathan, right?" Elise plasters a smile on her face. She's never seen him before, but Beckett mentioned him once. A friend from high school. With the emphasis on 'a'. They were never besties, that's for sure. Beckett also doesn’t seem one for friends. At least, if the first few months of the academic year were any indication.

"Yeah, that's me. And you're the.. girl that Beckett's always hanging around with. To which school did you go again?"

"Wait, high school? And I never really told anyo-" she says, looking at him questioningly.

"Yes," he interrupts her. 'Yikes,' Elise thinks, as she tries to hide the dislike for him she already feels crawling up her torso. Is he always like this, or..?

"Oh, West Eden high school..," she answers dutifully, taken aback and trying not to flush by his directness. Why would he possibly want to know this? He looks up and mentally lists all the names that come to mind, but quickly gives up and looks back at her.

"Weird, I’ve never heard of it…"

"How could you know all the names of all the high schools in America?" the girl laughs, trying to not come off as nervous. Suddenly, his face falls into a disapproving grimace.

"...Oh, it's.. it's a public school. Should've guessed," he almost scoffs. An awkward few silent seconds go by. Elise purses her lips and stares uncomfortably at a spot on the door frame, and a few times back at him. She hoped something like this wouldn’t happen, but deep down, she knew it would eventually have to.

"Okay, ..Well, I just had something to say to Beckett, so..," she breaks the silence. Nathan instantly turns around, slowly sauntering back to his dorm room door.

"Close the door behind you, will you?" he says, dismissively. And without a backward glance, his frame disappears behind the door. Stunned to silence, Elise glances to the other side of the common room. She’ll just go knock, right? Hesitantly, she steps through the door and closes it. As she notices the soft thudding of Unattuned music she turns her head back in the direction of Nathans’ door. As much as she hates to admit it, he has good taste. It seems so long ago that she was immersed in the Unattuned word. Oh Gods, she’s like one of them now. Her world, she corrects herself. The world she grew up in. Does she miss it? She smiles. Not really. It’s nostalgic. It was fun. Still is. But ever since she opened her eyes, soaking wet on the banks of the lake, sun blinding her, the buzzing sound of the people and the leaves of the trees moving in the wind, she felt a sense of home. Something she’s always been searching for. Clearing her head of thoughts, she knocks on Beckett’s door.

"Come in." she muffledly hears. Here she goes.. She opens the door. Beckett sits on his bed, with his back to her, leaning against the headboard. The book in his hands looks thick and old, and is definitely not part of the normal curriculum. Since he has the dorm other side, everything’s mirrored to her room, just like Shreya’s. The only difference is the sheer amount of books everywhere, his windowsill garden, how neat his room is and the fact that he sleeps to the wrong side with his head. Well, not wrong, just not how she would do it.

"Hey. It’s me," she greets him happily.

"It is," he sighs, not wanting to let his eyes leave his book. ‘Of course she needed to come here,’ he thinks. There’s a reason why he left the girls’ common room. So he wouldn’t have to deal with… this whole ordeal. Elise closes the door. This is going to be tough. How does she start this conversation without it being awkward?

"Uhm… I just wanted to ask if you’re okay."

"I’m good," he answers, still concentrating hard on his work. Or, trying to not concentrate on the fact Elise’s standing within three feet from him. Or that she’s clearly just taking pity in him. Why does she even bother?

"Oh..," she mumbles, looking at the tips of her worn down shoes. The sound of Beckett turning a page interrupts the silence.

"Was that everything?" he sighs, sounding almost annoyed, still not looking at her, avoiding eye contact at all costs.

"Well.. I don't exactly believe you," she gets out, after she mustered up the courage. Elise studies the right side of his face, trying to get a read. The only result she gets is a sigh. Growing tired of his lack of words, she initiates conversation once again.

"You were so short with me and the rest at my dorm and I just had the feeling you were kind of... Feeling off." Beckett shakes his head in frustration. When will she give up?

"Well, that feeling was wrong. I'm fine, I just have a lot of homework to get through, which would be a lot easier if you weren't here," he states, trying to not let his irritation be heard in his voice. Why does he even like this girl? Why did he have to like this exact one? Why did he have to like anyone? Elise is quiet for a second. She knows he isn’t being rude to her just because he can. It’s because he has to. The moment that thought crosses her mind, she wishes she never went on that date. Again, for that matter. Did she even want it a little bit?

"So Zeph was wrong," she casually comments. "He said you 'missed your favourite study buddy'."

"I can study fine on my own. Which is good, since I'll have to get used to it." The last sentence was said with a particular tone in his voice, which Elise can’t quite decipher. But she knows it has something to do with what happened today. He stands up, and without sparing a glance, puts his book back in it’s place on the nicely organized shelf above his desk.

"What are you talking about?" she asks, trying to get some clarification. Beckett sits down on his fancy spinning office chair, this time facing her.

"Nothing," he denies, wishing he never said anything. The thought of going back to how it was, studying alone for most of the time, is in some way both alluring and saddening. He likes her company. He likes her. Gods, why does this have to be so complicated?

When Elise doesn’t respond, he looks at her face, making eye contact for the first time she’s been here. The pulling sensation he feels in his chest causes him to look away again. He’ll just have to come to terms with the fact she’s probably not interested.

"I'm happy your date went well," he sighs, trying to not sound annoyed. Elise eyes roll at the mention of that dumb date.

"Oh please... 'well' is a little optimistic."

"Oh." Beckett attempts to not sound relieved.

"I don't know, I just.. don't like him that way. I'm not gonna go on a second date. Also no firsts anymore. At least for a while. It's so stupid." Elise babbles. She starts fiddling with one of her braids in annoyance. Beckett nods. "I wasn't even gonna go at first, but Shrey said ‘live a little’, so I did. And I found out life sucks."

"It's not because you don't date that life sucks," Beckett comments, sounding very logical.

"I know, it's a.. metaphore..," she defeatedly smiles. "Whatever, I just think dates are so mechanical. You're basically forcing yourself to like someone. I don't want to do that. I don't decide who I like. I like who I like, that's it," she blurts out. It comes out so fast she only realizes what she said a few seconds later. She feels her cheeks getting warmer. Why did she just say this?

"Yeah..," he halfsmiles, thinking back to the feelings that overtake him every time he thinks about her. The feelings he never asked for.

"I'm sorry, that was way too much, I'll be going now. Please don't tell any of this to Shreya, she's gonna flip…" Elise rattles off her sentence, pleadingly looking in his grey-brown eyes. She should’ve just bitten her tongue. Why is she like this?

"I won't," he answers. Beckett isn’t one to gossip, and especially not to Shreya. Elise jokingly calls her Shreylock, because the way she finds out gossip could get her a job as a detective. Then Shreya jokes back that that’s why her hair’s so big. ‘Because it’s full of secrets’. Beckett never understood that joke. But even he knows telling Shreya is a guaranteed way to make your secrets not so secret anymore. And why would he? What even would be interesting to Shreya about this conversation?

Elise breathes a sigh of relief and reaches for the door handle behind her back. She smiles at Beckett as she says,

"Thank the Gods for you." A little glint in her eye betrays the double meaning behind her words. A silent two seconds pass, when she laughingly shakes her head and opens the door. "Okay, thanks, bye!" she yells, as she ducks away through the door opening.

"Bye," he can’t help but smile at her quick disappearing act. The door of the common room thuds closed. After a few seconds in silence he shakes his head. Will he ever understand what goes on inside her head?

#the elementalists #te mc #theelementalists #playchoices #playchoices the elementalists #Beckett x Mc #beckett harrington #beckett harrington x mc #shreya mistry #zeph hernandez #te fanfics #the elementalists fanfic

[crazybutgood]

Self recs (origami)

Thank you for tagging me @tackytigerfic ! Love your list. Ahh this art list was harder to do than my fic one (partly because I just nice had 5 fics at the time 🙈) but I narrowed it down to 5, out of those that I'm allowed to reveal atm. I'm super nervous so I'm not tagging anyone 😅 but please join in if you see this and would like to do it, and tag me back too :)

Read under the cut, and please click on the images for better quality 😊

1. This was one of the first ones I did,, an origami crane wreath, one of the things I made for my wireless 2021 collab with Vukovich. I was still learning then, plus I've gotten much better at photography and photo editing now fjdjjd,, but it was a new challenge and I especially had a lot of fun making the wreath from scratch! Also I had so much material from Vuk's amazing fic to draw from to make this. It was the first origami project I did where I was able to go full on with the creativity and it inspired me to keep pushing my imagination for further projects too. On the left is the early stages of when I was trying to tie and dry the grape vines in a wreath after I had cut them from my garden, and on the right is the finished product:

2. The snowflake that I folded for my cluefest 2022 collab with fantalf ❄️ I had tried it last December just for fun to learn, not for the fest, and I botched up at some point when it was like well into the second half of being completed and I was super annoyed, plus my fingers hurt, so I just left it. Literally a few weeks later Lory asked if I could fold a snowflake for one scene 😂 I told them about my previous attempt, but that I'd still try again. They were so encouraging about my re-try (and so patient with my updates hfhej at one point I literally texted 'this next step is cursed') and I pushed myself to get it done and was satisfied with the result. Here is a close up of it, followed by the version of it on the header that was used for the fest work.

3. This diamond twist top box I made for shealwaysreads. I couldn't believe I finally made that twist top rose-looking fold,, I'd tried it twice on an origami hourglass I folded and that turned out okay-ish, but I think the attempt on this box was much better. I'd wanted to fold that for shealwaysreads the moment I read her fic and linked it to one of the origami models I hoard in my ideas folder 🙈 and I'm glad I managed to do it.

4. An origami mug collection that I'm working on~ I just fold stuff when I'm inspired by something, or fold mugs for others! (I'm still taking requests for that btw, feel free to hmu) I like this positive encouragement mug that I made because I aimed to be able to lift the spirits of anyone who happened to see it as they were scrolling, and I was happy to see that I was able to do that. I also really like this Cheers Queers mug because I just had so much fun making it

5. Origami lanterns~ I loved the idea of being able to fold them and actually placing a light in the middle to make it lit up and all. It was so fun,, I spent too much time on them hfhjfjd but it was so worth it. Here's an orange one with warm lighting I folded, and another blue one with bright lighting for samyiswriting's fic in reference to a scene in his fic (I'm keeping this spoiler-free here dw!):

#tagged #tag game #self rec #origami #cbg folds #mine