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draco-after-dark · 3 months

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How do you think feral’s brozone (and co) would react to finding out about the support group?

Ooooooh this is an interesting one.

I also still need to do designs for Feral's brothers but not much changes just a few small things.

I'm going to take this in the direction of something me and a few other JD's group creators talked about before. It's basically a Brozone day where all the JD support group JD's and their brothers all meet up.

This also makes things easier because Feral can't tell his brothers about the group. For obvious reasons.

I guess it really depends on the timeframe. If were talking right after the third movie then they would all be pretty sad. They don't know where their JD is (except for Floyd but oof) and now here they are watching all these different JD's hanging out with their younger brothers. At least for the ones on good terms with each other.

They would definitely get approach by Eldest at one point or another. That man is wholesome and sweet to not check in on the group of brothers tucked in the corner with no JD insight or even near them.

Que sad convo where they explain they don't know where their JD is and that he's most likely dead. Eldest feels incredible bad and would defiantly make them hangout with his brothers for the rest of the event.

For Feral the event would be so over whelming he would tuck into a corner after running through the crowd trying to see if him brother might be here but would quickly start to panic and then run off. Hitman would probably find him hiding under a table cloth. Hitman would defiantly get some chips from grey and give Feral some snacks. Checking in on him periodically during the event.

Now if where talking a few moths after the third movie things would be a lot different. Feral would be so excited for him brothers to meet his fellow JD's. Upon entering the event he would pin point his favorite JD's very quick. Dragging all his brothers over to Eldest and Hitman. I can Feral grabbing the arms of which ever two brothers are closest to him and pulling them up into the air and shaking them around like a kid going "LOOK! LOOK! I FOUND THEM! WE FOUND EACH OTHER!"

I don't know if Eldest and Feral's brothers would recognize each other but i can see Eldest crying at the wholesome dynamic between them all. Feral's brothers all giving him head scratches like the animal his is. Feral trotting around with Floyd on his back as he gives then a tour of the house. Bruce and Feral starting a wrestling match in the living room. Snake would definingly be cheering on the sidelines or even join it dragging his brothers into the mix. So it just turns into one big play fight. Feral's Clay and Branch simple off to the side shaking their heads.

I can see Feral's Branch getting along with Grey easily and Grey giving Feral's Branch the info on the chip bag tactic. Branch may or may start keeping chips bags in his vest at all time incase a certain purple and green haired troll ever appears. Grey and Branch fist bump.

Also i see Feral grabbing Hitman abruptly when his mid conversation with some and picking him up only to place him down it front of his brothers and Hitman being the awkward man his is just stands stands well Feral starts wildly gesturing around. His brothers don't really know what his saying but clearly Feral really like this JD so after they get past the initial awkwardness they start talking. Also they all lose their minds over tiny Ronda. Clay most of all to where he starts going the shaking hands thing.

So yeah his brothers would be thrilled to know that even though their technically other versions of himself that Feral has a few nice and awesome people in his life.

It also explains where that chewed up prosthetic arm came from that they found in the bunker. Among a few other items.

So yeah they are very happy for Feral and it was nice for them to hear JD's voice again even if it's not their JD's.

Also they loose their minds over some of the stories Eldest and Grey tell them about Feral. Most notable is the chip bag and arm incidents.

They get mentioned so "Hey guys bet your weren't expecting this. L."

Eldest JD belongs to @matmiraculous

Hitman JD belongs to @lemony-and-zesty

Snake JD belongs to @gingisauce

Grey JD belongs to @ijjstlostthegame

#feral jd au #mcdracoson asks #trolls dory verse #jd support group #His brothers are very happy for Feral

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bayleymania · 6 months

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I hope everyone is having a great Saturday! Except for Ronda Rousey, she can choke. Everyone else, enjoy our day.

#are we ready for Full Gear? Because I certainly am #also I didn’t sleep at all so I apologize if I’m more annoying than usual #lexie speaks

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thesupreme316 · 11 months

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Is the Grass Greener on the Other Side? EP.5

Summary: 1 month after her infamous “pipebomb”, how does Y/N feel when it feels like nothing has changed in her world? What will she do next?

Word Count: 2.6K

Warnings: Quick mentions of anxiety and depression-like symptoms (loneliness), kind of proofread (my bad)

Notes: sorry for being late but better late than never

Links to other parts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

“How could she do that?”

“I mean if you went through what she went through you would do the same”

“Good riddance Y/N!”

“Please go to AEW, they need you!!”

“tbh, that was one of my favorite pipebombs ever”

“I wish her the best and hopefully she’ll come back with Sasha and Naomi”

“She should have done it differently”

“Without WWE, where is she gonna go?”

It’s been 1 month. (August 2nd, 2022)

1 month full of tweets, posts, and people just interjecting their opinions. But also 1 month of your silence. You didn’t issue any statements, no comments, no interviews. After a bold move like that, you thought you would feel better. And in some ways you did, you feel like you removed the foot that was crushing your throat; like you got rid of the poisonous thing that has been draining your life.

You felt free.

But amid that freedom was there this excruciating silence that took up your mind where you’re second-guessing everything. Now, you just wanted to be left alone with your thoughts of what to do next.

WWE removed you from all programming, posters, and promotions. They put you on blast, as they did with Mercedes and Trinity, before dropping you as a subject altogether. It’s like you didn’t exist. Liv is still the champion, but it’s only a matter of time until Ronda gets it back. No one from WWE reached out; except for Bianca, Zelina, and Liv. And you sent Liv an apology bouquet for dragging her into the situation. Christian only reached out to tell you what a mistake you were making and how you should apologize (and also how this potentially might ruin his career).

You haven’t really talked to Mercedes or Trinity as they were extremely busy in the last few months with bookings. They were off doing signings, in tv shows, and being in fashion shows (you were the first person to know that they would be in New York Fashion Week). All while you were sitting in your apartment, just trying to figure yourself out.

Daniel, Paige, and Hook all check in on you at least once a day. With Daniel and Hook living so close, they often come by to chill with you (separately of course). Paige constantly facetimed you, so in a way you didn’t feel totally alone. And today was nothing different.

“Tyler, no I can’t just magically pop up at the strip club.” You said on the phone while looking through your fridge for something to cook.

“All I’m saying is that it’s a great way to reappear in the public’s eye,” Tyler said while snickering.

You grabbed your leftovers. “And this not because you would like to go to the strip club?” You paused. “Again?”

“Noo….anyways, how are you feeling today?” He asked, changing the subject

“Better than yesterday. I feel exhausted. And I’ve spent a month doing absolutely nothing.” You groaned as you put the leftovers in the microwave. “I just want to get up and do things but I don’t know what to do or where to start.”

“Y/N, you have to take everything one step at a time. Everyone moves at different paces, you can’t rush a process that you’re not completely ready for.” Tyler calmly explained as you sat on the couch, pondering his words. “Don’t feel like you need to make a big decision now. You need to evaluate all options before making a move. And just know that you will always have people that will support you, me included.”

“That was very sweet Tyler.”

“I can be a sweet guy, sometimes.” He said making the both of you laugh. “So, how’s your lover boy? You don’t talk about him much.”

You sighed before getting up and slightly pacing around the room, “There’s nothing to talk about, we haven’t talked much these days. He’s busy doing his thing.”

“So why are you still with him?”

You stopped in your tracks before answering, “Because I love him.”

“That may be true, but are you still in love with him?”

At that moment, it felt like your world came to a stop, like when Daniel asked if you could see yourself with someone else besides Christian. It was another loaded question, yet a big question that you had to figure out the answer to sooner or later. You truly do love Christian, after all, you two have shared a lot of memories. A lot of moments where he was the sole reason for your smile, how you got butterflies in your stomach when he texted you, or how you saw your life later on with him. But now? You were tired of being cast aside by him, tired of being treated as if everything you do is wrong. You were tired of how exhausting fights were with him and how he jealous he got of others in your life. Do you feel the same way now? Do those memories and moments outweigh what has been happening recently?

You became deep in thought before being pulled out by a knocking at the door and Tyler’s voice growing louder. “Y/N? Y/N, hello?” Your head snapped back to reality (oops there goes gravity-sorry).

“Hey, sorry Tyler. I’mma have to call you later, someone’s at my door.”

He sighed but understood. “Okay, but just remember if anything happens or if you need someone, my bed always has a place for you.”

You giggled before hanging up and answering the door, to the sight of Daniel. You briefly hugged before letting him in and going to get your hot leftovers from the microwave. “Why are you here? I thought you were training today.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t heard from you.”

“Danny, I’m fine. You can go to your training session.”

“No can do, I cancelled it.”

You put down your fork, looking at the man who was now occupying your couch. “You mean to tell me that just because you didn’t hear from me, you dropped everything to check on me?” 

“Hell yeah. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay and safe. I needed to lay eyes on you.” He said getting up and walking towards you. Your heart swelled at his words. You were blessed that someone saw you that important in their life. “I just need you to call like once a day to know that you’re okay.” He said grabbing another fork and taking a bite of your leftovers. “You always make the best stirfry.”

“Danny, what should I do?”

“About the entire situation?” He raised his eyebrows. You nodded as he sighed. “To be honest Y/N, in my opinion, you need a clean slate. Then you can build whatever your heart desires. But the thing is that you already caused drama at WWE, to the point where if you go back something is sure to pop off again. You don’t need that and you damn sure don’t deserve that.”

“To be honest, I don’t know what I deserve at this point.”

Daniel sighed before grabbing your hands and staring into your eyes. “Y/N, you are an incredible woman and you deserve all the fine things in life. And if you don’t see that, you are dumb as hell.” He said making you laugh. “Anyways, what were you doing before I got here?”

“I was just on the phone with-“ And you cut yourself off, trying your best not to finish the sentence (for fear of making Daniel upset).  “Hook?” You shyly nodded as you avoided eye contact. “I don’t care if you guys talk.”  “You hate him.”

“I hate his stupid perfect hair. And the way he does his suplexes. And the way that he just gets everything he wants.” He said slowly letting go of your hands. He cleared his throat as you side-eyed him. “But yeah he’s a cool dude.”You rolled your eyes as he started to rant about work, you grabbed your phone. Your eyes started to scroll around before they widened on one particular text from an unexpected person. You started to drown him a bit as you kept in the text. “Y/N, are you okay?”

You blinked with a blank stare on your face. You slowly nodded and just said, “I have a meeting tomorrow apparently.”

“With who?”

“I don’t even wanna discuss it.” And you threw your phone across the room and placed your head under a pillow.

(August 3rd, 2022)

You woke up nervous as hell.

You didn’t know what to expect from this meeting. Will this make things worse or better for both of us?

You put on a semi-business outfit with nice shades, you did your makeup and hair very quickly. You grabbed your purse before passing Daniel (who was knocked out on the couch after all had drinks and game night) and left to rush to your meeting. You couldn’t decide if it was a blessing or a curse that your meeting was close to your apartment; you couldn’t shake your feelings as your anxiety grew to be pounding in your ears, making you almost hyperventilate. As you approached the building, you took a deep breath before walking into the plaza. You made talked to the receptionist before getting the clear to go upstairs.

You took the elevator and got out at your stop. Walking straight ahead to the doomed door. You took another deep breath before putting on a fake smile and knocking on the door. You heard a grumbled and muffled come in.

You opened the door to see the person with a smile behind a stack of papers. “You know Hunter, I never thought I would see you like this.”

“Y/N, I told you numerous times to call me Paul.”

“Hunter just rolls better.” You shook his hand as you two sat at the wooden coffee table.

Before the whole situation, Paul (Triple H) has also been one of your mentors when dealing with the wrestling business. You credit him with a lot of business moves and how your character was booked. Before your walkout, you two would talk every week (sometimes even multiple times a week). Now, this was the first time you were communicating before in a little over a month.

“I’ll get right to it. Neither Vince nor John are here, so you can be as open and honest with me as you want. Whatever is stated here will remain between the two of us.” Paul said. You nodded but you didn’t want to start right away, instead, you were trying to organize your thoughts. What could you tell him? That you were mad that things were being unfair and no one else saw that but you? That you couldn’t stand being in this company anymore as days go on. “I’ll start if you want.” He said, you nodded again.

He sighed as he tried to find the words to say. “Y/N, I’m incredibly sorry for not speaking up in the past for you. I knew of the plans and voiced my displeasure about them when Vince wanted to give the title to Ronda. I’ve tried telling them that there needs to be more substance within the women’s division and constantly giving Ronda a title is not the way to go about it, no matter how well I get along with her. But I know, what you said and done is not just based on Ronda and how Vince operates with her. It’s something much deeper”

You sighed as you started agreeing with him, “That was literally what I was trying to talk about. The women’s division needs more attention, storylines, and substance. We have women who have been with the company for several years who have been put on the back burner, women who have not been allowed to showcase their talent or improve in the ring and then get ridiculed for it, and we have the same people showing up with all the time with the same storylines with the same opponents. Or even worse, we get the short end of the stick and get our times cut when shit does over the time limit. I’m just tired of it all. And I’m tired of being the one who is always sacrificed for Ronda or someone else’s agenda. And then to top it off, we don’t get paid as much as we should, unlike our male counterparts.”

You paused before continuing, “I will admit, the way that I stated my grievances was distasteful and a bit selfish, but I didn’t know how else to get anyone to listen to me. I want to apologize for embarrassing you, and the company, and putting you and Liv in an uncomfortable position. That was never my intention, I intended to state my displeasure with the treatment of the women’s division and how we are ultimately nothing more than stepping stools to a particular figure.” You avoided his gaze and just focused on everything in the room, but him.

Paul chuckled before shaking his head, “Y/N, you did not embarrass me.” He said, making you look up at him with shock. “Shit, I mean what you did actually brought a smile to my face, that I had to hide from Vince. It made me think back to the Curtain Call incident in a way. You should never have to compromise your feelings and beliefs for this business, instead stand up for what you believe in. And you did exactly that, you stood up for what you think is right and you should do without remorse. Sometimes we have to be selfish with our agendas, cause we have to look out for ourselves at the end of it. Mercedes is doing it, Trinity is doing it, and now so are you.”

Giving a small smile, you responded, “How’s Vince taking it?”

“He wasn’t happy with it at first. But then he saw how much interaction WWE was getting and soon just decided to make it into a work. He’s open to talking and compromising, especially since your contract is expiring soon. But the question is, do you want to talk? Do you want to compromise? But first, let me ask you; when you did this, did you ever think what was gonna happen afterward?” You shook your head as he continued, “Well, then what do you want to do? Everything is your call now and I’ll explain this later, but you put us in a hard spot.”

You looked to Paul before saying, “I want a clean slate. I deserve a clean slate.”

Paul sat back in his chair, quiet for a moment. He widened his eyes as if he just thought of something, “What if I can make a deal with you? And I can give you that clean slate.”

You smiled, “I’m listening.”

—Time-Skip 1 hour later—

You walked out of the building feeling so much better than how you felt coming in. You squealed with excitement as you believed everything was coming into place and you were gonna get your peace back. That your slate, your canvas was clear. But then you shortly realized that it wasn’t, your slate wasn’t all the way cleared. You sat down on a nearby bench, getting out your phone. You pressed the phone icon before scrolling to a certain contact, your finger hovered over it before pressing it to dial. Lifting the phone to your ear to speak, the call quickly went to voicemail after two rings. You brought down your hand to end the call, but after quick consideration, you put it back up just in time to hear the voice message beep.

You took a breath in and said, “Hey, I just wanted to say thanks for everything for the past couple of years. Even though shit’s been going south lately and we aren’t what we use to be, I love you and I’ll still love you. I know you’re thinking about deleting this message already but I just want to say one more thing….

We’re over Christian.”

taglist: @triscillal @sheinthatfandom @wwenhlimagines @zatarias-pandora @hooks-martin @hookerforhook

#aew #all elite wrestling #wwe #aew imagines #aew fics #wwe fics #wwe imagines #all elite wrestling imagines #aew hook #aew hook imagine #daniel garcia imagine #daniel garcia #daniel garcia fic #aew hook x reader #wrestling imagine #women's wrestling #wwe carmelo imagine #wwe carmelo

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puissantveil · 8 months

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Has anyone else noticed?

Some of the MK1 characters have more or less "inherited" traits from those sitting this entry out.

Kitana's newfound wit seems to come from Jade; in MK11 she was Ms. Serious Business and emphatically Did Not Fuck Around.

Johnny Cage, now in the 21st century, uses a lot of recent slang used both online and IRL (much of which, yes, originates from AAVE before white kids latched onto it)

Li Mei's attitude toward Johnny reminds me of Sonya (cool Sonya, not Ronda Rousey in a hat Sonya)

On a more negative note, Bi-Han is basically Frost, except without the benefit of the doubt coming from NRS trying to make her hateable (do you really think an aggressive hothead like her would have the patience for a whole ass cyber initiative?)

I actually think this is pretty cool (except for the last one) because it means they haven't forgotten those characters, but I can see how it could be interpreted as lazy.

Has anyone else noticed this with any other characters? Let me know.

#unveiled thoughts #mk1 #mortal kombat 1 #kitana #jade mk #jade mortal kombat #johnny cage #sonya blade #li mei #cassie cage

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1-800-sinister · 2 months

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send me some requests if you have sent some and i haven't seen them it's lost:( i write almost everybody except ronda rousey, nia jax, stephanie mcmahon, and any other person who has done bad things

#rhearipley #wwe imagine #wwe #rhea ripley #rhea ripley x reader #wwe x reader #wwe smut #rhea ripley smut

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tobiasdrake · 6 months

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Examining MK1 Characters: Outworld

So, that was Earthrealm. Now for Outworld, which is in the opposite boat. This is where all of the estrogen fled to after Liu Kang declared that women were banned from Earthrealm.

Seriously, I don't know what Sonya did to warrant being unpersoned like that. Kenshi's ending even features the formation of the iconic Special Forces group from the previous timelines like, "And then Kenshi and Jax teamed up and formed their agency. That's right, Kenshi and Jax. That iconic and beloved Special Forces duo, Kenshi and Jax. Those are the names people think of when they think Special Forces. Kenshi and Jax!"

Did Netherrealm notice that people were upset about Ronda Rousey's performance as Sonya, and their takeaway is that the fandom doesn't like Sonya? Was that it? Is that why she's been banished to the mystical realm of Kameo-exclusivity?

In any case, if you want to be a woman, you gotta leave Earthrealm now. Outworld doesn't own a monopoly on women but it has absorbed Edenia's high concentration of female characters and brought most of them to the foray. Pretty much every Edenian lady is here.

Except Jade. Poor Jade.

Sindel NRS's Evil Sindel from MK11 was an extremely divisive character. You either loved her or hated her. Either she was an empowering portrayal that granted Sindel complete agency over the events that happened to her, or she was another example of taking characters created as victims of abuse and painting over them with deranged, monstrous villains. A lot of opinions were had and shared over the direction they took the previously-heroic Sindel in the reboot trilogy.

MK1 seems to have heard the criticisms, though, because they walk it back. Re-reboot Sindel is a mostly benevolent but flawed ruler who governs Edenia Outworld?

It's just Outworld now. Edenia doesn't exist anymore; Kang shunted all the good stuff about it into Outworld. Seems rude given how much of the Original Timeline Edenians' plot was about liberating their realm from Outworld, but okay. Edenia is officially decanonized.

In any case, NRS takes a crack at writing Sindel as a compassionate but flawed leader, eager to preserve peace between the realms but mindful of the potential dangers inherent to international politics and vulnerable to manipulation from those she trusts.

The genuinely complex political conflict unfolding between Earthrealm and Outworld, courtesy of mistakes made by both Liu Kang and Sindel, is the best part of the game. Sindel feels incredibly human and believable here, as both a person and a ruler.

She's also the only character in the entire game that dies, so it looks like NRS regrets how bloody they made the previous attempt at a reboot. Might seem odd for an MK game to be mostly bloodless but, surprisingly, it's pretty on-brand. It was rare for too many characters to die in the actual plots of the original Mortal Kombat series - and when they did, the sequel would generally find some way of ignoring it anyway.

Only one character dying while everyone else makes plans for what they'll do in the sequel is pretty normal by pre-reboot standards.

Mileena They keep trying to make Mileena pretty while still paying, pardon the pun, lip service to her iconic monstrous features. They tried giving her those weird, gross human lips in MKX. But the current approach, seen in MK1 and the newer Mortal Kombat film, is to have her be 100% pretty 99% of the time but she can mutate into the monster teeth for short spurts of screentime.

I don't like it. Let Mileena be hideous. Stop trying to fix her face. Female characters don't always have to be pretty.

As to her role in the story? Mileena and Kitana's relationship is one of the most underdeveloped things in Mortal Kombat. In the original canon, these two were raised together as sisters for 10,000 years before Kitana broke from their family - But the original games had so little storytelling and were so uninterested in examining Mileena as a character that very little was ever done with it. She was Evil Minion #6.

The reboot was a golden opportunity to finally explore the potential between these two characters. But they made the inexplicable decision to have Mileena literally born yesterday - while also sexualizing the hell out of her despite that. So she immediately alienates Kitana because they have no relationship. Then she dies.

So. No. Reboot trilogy was every bit as uninterested in examining Mileena and Kitana's relationship as the original.

This new timeline gives us a wildly different context for everything that Mileena is. But it also, finally, puts their relationship front and center of their characters. So, one step back, two steps forward. We get to see a profound bond of loyalty and love between the twin daughters of Shao Kahn Sindel - and without Shao Kahn's wickedness to break them apart, that bond is never shattered.

Every moment that these two are onscreen together is golden.

I have other thoughts about "Tarkat Disease" but we'll get to those when we get to Baraka. My main takeaway from Mileena's portrayal is that it's nice to finally see the dynamic between Mileena and Kitana share a spotlight in one of these games; to see Mileena handled as a character, and not just Kitana's Evil Twin/Shao Kahn's Evil Daughter.

Kitana As a consequence of no longer being the fugitive princess seeking to thwart her villainous father, Kitana's role takes a significant downgrade. She's the Kung Lao of Edenia now; It's Mileena and Kitana, there is no Just Kitana. Which is a bit of a twist given that Kitana is traditionally the true heir and Mileena's a counterfeit.

Consequently, Kitana doesn't get to do much besides hold Mileena's hand and support her, and occasionally throw hands on her behalf. Though, Kitana's the only one of her family that doesn't get a chapter, so she doesn't even get to be any good at hand-throwing. She's relegated to cannon fodder in fight scenes.

Going from Kitana Khan, ascendant supreme ruler of Outworld to Mileena's emotional support sibling and occasional Story Mode punching bag feels jarring. This may be what that stuff with Titan Kitana was thrown in to offset.

I'm okay with Kitana taking a more passive role here since it gives Mileena and Sindel, two dramatically underserved characters, opportunities to shine. But I hope they can find more for her to do in the next one. She's too beloved and popular to remain out of the spotlight for long.

(Still better than what Sonya got.)

Li Mei This character has nothing to do with Li Mei. They created a brand new original character and gave her Li Mei's name. That's what happens sometimes to D-listers. Li Mei was a character created for Deadly Alliance and then given almost nothing to do, either in that game or its sequels. So it's not surprise that they remade her from the ground up.

The new Li Mei's story is primarily governed by her relationship with Sindel. Jerrod died on her watch, fracturing her relationship with Sindel and resulting in a bitter and emotionally complicated dynamic between Sun Do's demoted First Constable and her Empress.

My favorite thing about Li Mei and Sindel's relationship is its sincerity. Neither of them are hiding anything. There's no big twists lurking. Well, there is one, and it's that a third party scapegoated Li Mei, but it wasn't Sindel who did it so it doesn't affect their dynamic with one another.

It's. Just. An emotionally intense relationship fractured by a sudden tragedy. You can feel the love that once existed between them in the fires of Sindel's grief-stricken hatred. But even demoted and denigrated and spurned as she is, Li Mei's loyalty and friendship is everlasting. This relationship is beautiful, and seeing it ultimately heal may be the biggest triumph in the game.

Tanya Tanya, the ever-traitor. Treachery is her name, deception is her way of life. Her "hat" so to speak is betraying her nation to whoever might be buying. She's the Kano of Edenia. The ultimate villain may change from game to game but if they need Edenian secrets, Tanya's the place to go.

She rebooted in MKX, where she was simply a devoted follower of Mileena. Then. Like. Fucked off. The writers have never cared much about Tanya.

MK1 keeps the part about her being a devoted follower of Mileena and tosses the rest. She's returned to where we met her in MK4: Serving the Edenian Outworld throne, but sincerely this time. Like Kitana, she gets little to do besides throw hands poorly at everyone else.

But they do ship her with Mileena. Got that whole Bodyguard/VIP romance going, which gets honed in on during Mileena's chapter. So that's neat.

Baraka Since Jade didn't make the cut, that brings us to the men of Outworld.

So. Tarkat Disease. Gonna say up front that I don't like this. I don't like boiling down a sentient race of beings into lepers. It's gross. I feel like they only did this so they had a means by which to make Mileena pretty. I don't like that.

But whatever the reason for that decision, Baraka makes out like a bandit. This is the first time in Mortal Kombat history that Baraka's been. Like. A character, rather than simply a token representative of his race. Throughout both original and reboot timelines, Baraka's simply been the Tarkatan. A character design more than a character.

It's like playing a Star Wars game where the playable characters include Darth Vader, the Emperor, Darth Maul, Boba Fett, and Stormtrooper FB-119. Who is FB-119? He's a Stormtrooper. He's here so you can play as a Stormtrooper if you want. That, historically, is Baraka.

He still is, to some degree. MK1 Baraka still engages with the plot on behalf of Tarkatans as a whole. But he also gets to be here as an individual; To tell his own personal story of who he is and how he came to be, independent of his race. That's new. That's something Baraka's never had before.

So it's easy to say that this is by far the best Baraka we've ever had. Speaking of characters defined by their race who suddenly get to be individuals:

Reptile Did you know Reptile has a name now? Because Reptile has a name now. Up until this point, he's always been Reptile. Because he is a reptile. That is how much thought previously went into this character. Reptile was his name. But now he has a name, in addition to Reptile.

Like Mileena, Reptile suffered from having a genuinely fascinating character concept drowned out by his role as Evil Minion #4. He was the last survivor of a race exterminated by Shao Kahn, raised by Shao Kahn to believe that his people were out there and to want Kahn's help to search for them.

Are you kidding me? That's amazing. You have an incredible protagonist on your hands and you're wasting him on bad guy grunt work? Reptile and Kitana should be teaming up as partners in uncovering daddy's dirty laundry!

His non-canon endings would always be like, "But then Reptile discovered the awful truth and turned against Shao Kahn!" But they never pulled that trigger. Despite his wealth of potential, Reptile wasn't a character anyone was interested in developing.

As with Mileena and Kitana, MK1 unwrites a lot of what made Reptile interesting, but also grants him the narrative focus and character examination that he's been lacking. About nine games too late, he finally gets to turn against his cruel masters and break free of the chains they've bound him with. And he finally gets a name to call his own: Syzoth.

Which has technically been his name since MKX but this is the first time it was revealed outside of questionably-canon pre-fight banter. Because this is the first time he's ever mattered as a character.

Rain Like Mileena and Reptile, Rain is a surprisingly complicated character on paper, but Evil Minion #3 in practice. The bastard son of an Edenian king's affair. An illegitimate heir to a throne that will never be his birthright, taken in by Shao Kahn as an orphan - who may or may not have played a critical role in Kahn's conquest of the realm. Man, Kahn collects talented children like he's Evil Batman.

Rain is a character with a wealth of potential but who has never had his day in the sun. Sadly, unlike Mileena and Reptile, that day is not this day. The new Rain jettisons that narrative entirely, reducing him to simply "Some guy who's good at magic". While the other two got increased narrative focus in exchange, Rain's still hanging out as Evil Minion #3.

Maybe some day, Rain. Maybe some day.

General Shao Shao. Motherfucking. Kahn. The Big Bad Evil Guy of Mortal Kombat. Writers have gone back and forth on what he is and where he comes from but make no mistake: Where he walks, the heavens do tremble.

Now he's the pissant Sec-Def who wants to fire nukes at the aliens.

That probably sounds like I didn't like this direction for him but I do. It's a plot point that Liu Kang explicitly went out of his way to disempower all of the villains. Shang Tsung and Quan Chi had their destinies interfered with and altered by Titan Tsung, causing them to become the villains they were never supposed to be able to.

But Shao? Tsung only conspired with him because it was convenient. Kang made it so Shao was born too sickly and frail to ever become the shit-stomping uber-warrior that he was, and Shao still made his way to the absolute peak of Outworld's military by sheer force of Shao Kahn-ness.

I wonder how Liu Kang felt years back, when he first heard the name "General Shao" emerge from Sindel's lips? Like. He went to so much trouble to prevent this and it still happened. And not because of extra-temporal invaders this time. Shao Kahn simply cannot be pinned down. No matter how weak you make him, he will find a way to make himself strong. That tenacity and resilience is what makes him so dangerous.

Reiko Also, Reiko is here. Another recipient of the "And X" treatment, Reiko is the other Outworld Military representative. His job is to stand next to Shao and go, "YEAH, what he said!" And occasionally get beat up so that we can have an Outworld Military guy beat up without diminishing Shao's menace.

Reiko's a good pick for Shao's "And X" partner. That's already what this character is. He does his job... adequately. Never stands out, but never falls flat.

If I had one criticism for Reiko, it's that they take him too seriously. His goofy obsession with Shao, styling himself after Shao and sneaking into his throne room to wear his helmet, all that fun stuff is absent from this portrayal. He snaps to attention, salutes, and says, "YES, SIR!" That's all there is to him.

Shang Tsung Ah, the game's main villain. I hope you like Shang Tsung because there's two separate Shang Tsungs here. Shang Tsung manipulates Shang Tsung until he inevitably betrays Shang Tsung, forcing Shang Tsung to turn on Shang Tsung and instead help to defeat Shang Tsung.

This would be an incredible satire if it wasn't played totally straight.

I'm not fond of Titan Shang Tsung, for the way he hijacks the story and forces it to abandon all of the characters and plotlines that had been developing up to that point. The big Titan free-for-all at the end was a disappointing conclusion for me, especially since it ends the game on a redo of Aftermath's ending.

But the native Shang Tsung? Much like Shao, Shang Tsung being a slippery enough worm to reach out and snatch the destiny that's been kept from him is a consistent character trait. Nonetheless, when we meet him, he's still growing and developing. He's an alchemist and sorcerer, but isn't quite the soul-hungry eldritch beast we know from other entries in the franchise.

Unfortunately, his role within the story is compromised by reference. This game wants really badly for you to notice that it's Reboot Deadly Alliance. They go hard on it. The Deadly Alliance forms up to awaken Reboot Onaga's Army like in Deadly Alliance, but then Tsung pulls the rug out from under them. So we have the Shang Tsung chapter, about the Deadly Alliance defeating Titan Tsung's forces alongside Raiden, with winking nods to how Raiden was their enemy in Deadly Alliance.

Then, after that, Titan Shang Tsung forms the Titan Deadly Alliance! DO YOU GET IT? DO YOU REMEMBER DEADLY ALLIANCE? I REMEMBER DEADLY ALLIANCE.

Like. What's the deal with all this Deadly Alliancing? Are Shang Tsung and Quan Chi, like, actually friends now or something? Even their extradimensional counterparts are attached at the hip.

Honestly, as cool as the novelty of "The Deadly Alliance is on our side now!" is, it's still just novelty. Shang Tsung is with us because Other Shang Tsung wants to kill him. But also, it doesn't matter because nothing he does once he turncoats has any consequence; Liu Kang defeats Titan Shang Tsung in a big Titan Armageddon, which the Deadly Alliance Plus Raiden's big victory has no effect on anyway.

Ultimately, the new Shang Tsung is a cool idea that winds up getting dragged down by the overarching decisions for where the story wants to go.

#mortal kombat #mortal kombat 1 #mortal kombat 12 #kitana #mileena #sindel #li mei #tanya #baraka #reptile #rain #shao kahn #reiko #shang tsung

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havendance · 5 months

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Indie Comic Reading Roundup

I've gotten through just about all the trades I checked out at this point (ignoring all the dark knight metal stuff), so here's my thoughts:

Once and Future vol. 1 by Kieron Gillen, art by Dan Mora, colors by Tamara Bonvillain (collected Issues #1-6)

I am not super into arthuriana but I think it's fun to dip my toe into every once in a while. The basic plot here involved the mythic cycle being re-enacted in the modern day, which I am always a sucker for so I thought it was quite fun. The pacing felt a little rough at first--moving very quickly when I would've appreciated a little more time spent to stop and get explanations--but I really felt like it got into the swing of things for the last 2 issues which really took advantage of everything that had been building.

Art was good (though since I've gotten used to seeing Mora draw superheroes, it did take a moment for my brain to switch gears here). The grandmother is very fun. I probably check out more of this series.

The Invisible Kingdom vol.1 by G. Willow Wilson, art by Christian Ward (collected issues #1-5)

This one didn't click for me. With one of the two basic ideas being 'space monastery', I wanted to like it, but I felt like the execution didn't quite do it for me. I think I would've like more time to sit and build out the world more; there were several aspects that I would've liked to see expanded on. There were aspects of the plot that didn't really work for me and I found myself wanting more clarity on what sort of timeline these events were happening on.

Ward's art was also very hit or miss for me: it really thrived when depicting space. It had gorgeous colors and dynamism then. Other times, it felt rough and kind of unfinished in a way that didn't work for me. I don't think I'll be reading this one further.

Dark Spaces: Wildfire by Scott Snyder, art by Hayden Sherman, colors by Ronda Pattison

I really loved this one. This collected a stand-alone 5 issue story that was very well executed. It tells the story of a squad of women convict firefighters in California who embark on a heist which (in true heist form) proceeds to go wrong. It was well plotted--all the characters felt distinct, though with only 5 issues and 5 women on our squad, it felt like we only really got to know a couple really well.

The art was gorgeous. Pattison's colors especially were a pleasure to look at. I definitely recommend checking this one out.

Y: The Last Man by Brian K. Vaughan, art by Pia Geurra, and colors by Pamela Rambo (collected issues #1-10)

This one's a bit of a stretch for the indie comics category since, upon checking, it's Vertigo. Not sure where that falls as a DC imprint. Regardless, it gets included on here as it doesn't take place in any larger universe and I might as well.

Brian Vaughan can tell a good story. This is no exception. I sat down on the floor and read all 10 issues in this in one fell swoop. So yeah, gripping story, very engaging. All the characters and world-building feels very thought out. The main road trip plot going on so far gives a very good excuse to see the different ways the world has been effected/people have responded to plague which wipes all men(except for our titular last one) that is the inciting incident.

I like the art style and flatter colors that this has. I definitely want to read more. Apparently I can access this on dcui which I didn't realize previously. We shall see in which format I end up reading this.

#havendance reads comics #comics #once and future #dark spaces: wildfires #the invisible kingdom #y the last man #carthago delenda est

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smartycvnt · 1 year

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If You Could Only See

Pairing: Big E x Reader

Prompt: 14. "They don't know what they're missing out on with you."

WC: 662

The energy backstage for tonight's Smackdown show hadn't felt this good in forever. You remembered how happy everybody was whenever Liv won the title, then again when Ronda left, but this was huge. Personally, you had been feeling like since E's injury, things hadn't been the same. Then, New Day went down to be NXT champs, which had really screwed things up in your book. It was hard not having three of your best friends there. On top of all that, Naomi and Sasha leaving had been rough as well. You felt like you were sort of stranded with nobody to hang out with. Eventually you did start to make some more friends, but it wasn't the same. Although, you weren't completely sure that your feelings for everyone had been completely friendly.

"Oh, oh! There she is! Why are you sitting here all by yourself?" E asked you. Xavier and Kofi came up behind him. They probably had an idea of why you had been isolating yourself. You didn't know what the guys talked about in the locker rooms, but you did know your name had been passing through quite a few of the guys' lips these past couple of months. Dating in the business was hard, and you thought you had found yourself a good guy in Trick Williams, but things just hadn't worked out. The breakup hadn't been overly bad, but your date with Grayson Waller just a couple weeks later had not gone well. You knew he was a bit of a jerk, but you hadn't known the extent of that at the time.

"Because it's how I am going to spend the rest of my life, so I'd better get used to it," you said sadly. E frowned as he knelt down in front of you. You knew there was some sort of pep talk coming, one that would actually work because Big E's pep talks always worked on you. He made you happier than anybody else could, but for some reason, neither of you ever tried going for it. At first, it was because he was a big champion, and you doubted that he'd want to go out with a nobody. But then you made a name for yourself and got into a series of situationships with guys who were not necessarily boyfriend material.

"I don't know what is going on with you right now. I don't know who you let break your heart this time, but I do know one thing. They don't know what they're missing out on with you. Kof and X will back me up on this, there is absolutely out there like you. Everybody, no matter who they are or whether or not they deserve it, they get nothing except for respect and kindness from you all the time. In these times, genuinely good people can be hard to come by, but there is not a day that goes by that I have ever doubted how good you are. And I wish that you could see yourself from my point of view because I think you would show yourself the love that you deserve. Or at the very least let me do it for you."

"You want to love me?" You couldn't help but sound a little skeptical about this. E was one of the most genuine men that you had ever met, but this almost sounded too good to be true.

"I don't want to love you, I already do. I want you to let me love you. I want you to give me a chance to let you see yourself through my eyes," E said. You didn't need to mull over his words in your head. You knew what he was asking, and it was something that you had been wanting for so long. E seemed relieved whenever you agreed to give him a chance. Even Kofi and Xavier were celebrating for the two of you not-so-quietly in the background.

#big e #big e x reader #wwe x reader #wwe #my writing

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fostersffff · 8 months

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I saw Cristina Vee post that she was doing voice work for Nitara in Mortal Kombat 1 (who was mocapped by Megan Fox). I assumed that meant they learned from their lesson in MK11, where they had Ronda Rousey play Sonya, and every single one of her line reads were fucking awful. So, yay, boomers and coomers get to see Megan Fox but there’ll be a capable voice performer to deliver lines!

Except I misread that, and Megan Fox is delivering even worse reads than Ronda Rousey, and they only hired Cristina Vee to do the combat grunts and yells.

#also to be shitty about appearances: Megan Fox has entered the Angelina Jolie zone #where I can- on an objective level- understand why boomers and coomers talk about her like she’s the most beautiful woman ever #but she just straight up looks like an alien to me #Mortal Kombat #MK1

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daddysbluntlilinstrument · 2 months

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ok hear me out, what if instead of there being two Deans in endverse, Now Dean just replaced Future Dean and had to take on his role / job to show him the kinds of decisions he'd have to make, the kind of life he'd have to live if he didn't say yes. Then we have a more disoriented, softer Dean and a Cas who's partially grieving his version of Dean but also missed that old version of him SO BAD that he secretly, selfishly is glad to have him back (and feels horribly guilty about it too). So everything is the same except instead of Future Dean knocking his other version out, Dean spots Cas going into his cabin and follows him (rip Ronda Hurley scene, you will be missed)

#destiel #endverse #spn crack #destiel ficlet #spn #supernatural #the brainrot is real #considering writing this as a fic...

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chaoticizz · 10 months

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ngl with Priest winning i can be ok with nobody else i like winning tonight I am fine with that being the only personal favorite win.

Except for the Tag Titles. I fucking hate Ronda and Shayna as characters. If they’re good people irl cool but in the WWE i hate them and don’t want them to have anything nice.

#wwe #damian priest #money in the bank #women’s tag team championship #liv morgan #raquel rodriguez #shayna baszler #ronda rousey

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danwhobrowses · 3 months

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My Highlights from Royal Rumble 2024

So it's people throwing season again, soon to be sign pointing season

The Royal Rumble remains perhaps the secondmost highlight of WWE's calendar, mainly as it sets the wheels for Wrestlemania. This one however has a stacked amount of names but an air of distaste given the lawsuit against Vince McMahon, allegations which are horrid and egregious and would justify anyone who sought not to watch the show in response to it.

Still, the PPV was something to check out...albeit not through paid transaction, so let's talk about the positives of the show

Spoilers for the PPV

The Pre-Show is worthless save for Paul Heyman who always delivers on the promo

Pat McAfee always feels happy to show up at least

Nice to hear Naomi get a pop again

Even though it failed in the end, Kairi's hold-on was pretty cool

Showing the top 3 active wrestler's times was a nice bit of information too

Big ass wings from Zelina

Shotzi got a bigger tank this time

Oh Truth...

Bayley was very much the right call to win too

They at least explained why the count wasn't made during the stack, even if it's bull

Oh Hey Logan Paul actually has some decent gear...

Putting the Usos to start the Men's Rumble is a clever move

Andrade's extra headpiece for his mask was cool

Reminder that technically since nobody entered in place of Rey Mysterio last year and that Cody left over the top rope that he technically won last year's Royal Rumble

Kaiser with the casual sidestep as Lashley brawled with AOP next to him

GUNTHER, that is all

Truth trying to tag in XD Then doing the Cena 5 moves of doom

Gotta hand it to him Dom sold the hell out of being thrown over

SAMI, would've been a great surprise winner

'Sami Zayn used to have a windpipe'

The mini match of Cody and Punk started well, kinda showing that really they could've had a Mania match and left the rumble winner a surprise because they got too obsessed with each other

Conclusion

Eh, I didn't have as good a time as I'd hoped I'm afraid. A lot of dead space or things not clicking; the US title and UNI title matches were forgettable, the former's finish was awful. Jordynne showing up was a surprise spoiled already but even then it happened last year with Mickie anyway, not much novelty there, plus she eliminated nobody and was felled in a minute against Belair, classic WWE-ism of 'oh this is a top person for you? Well they're not as good as our non-champion'. Pat eliminating himself was a waste of time, and as much as Jade had a good showing like, Nia? Really? We've seen many pick up Nia Jax let's be serious here. Also neither Jimmy or Jey eliminated each other, what was the point of them as the first two? GUNTHER deserved better than being eliminated by Cody yet again and Drew and Punk literally did the same thing before they were eliminated.

I suppose it'd be enjoyable if you were a WWE-only who believes everything commentary says, even when they contradicted themselves on the night when Waller and Theory referenced Luger/Hart's win and then later Cole went 'no rumble has had 2 winners'. But even then the men's rumble was woefully obvious, Cody winning back to back just feels uninspired too, they're literally trying to run it back after dropping the ball last time - except, with no WWE championship anymore Cody can't really finish the story of winning the title his father was robbed of winning now can he? It's just, not surprising, and that's been the theme of this entire event because you saw most of it coming a mile off; Jade, Naomi, Jordynne, Andrade, Cody/Punk final two, Solo interferes in Roman's match, Logan Paul wins beat cheap means it's just meh, the only genuine surprise was Sami coming back and he barely lasted. Also I gotta say that WWE's method of lying to media to try and put people off the scent; 'Ronda Rousey isn't returning in the rumble' (not this year ofc), 'oh Punk talks fell apart he won't return at Survivor Series', 'Cody's not finishing the story this year', it isn't a misdirect it's just fucking lying. And man Punk's credibility continues to drop when he talks about how great it is in the company that he accused of making him mentally ill and then doing a Pedigree in the ring, bad enough that Cody does one as a face after he kept teasing it as a symbol of a heel turn in AEW and then left before he did.

On the plus side at least, Bayley deserved that win.

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tamtam-go92 · 1 year

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Group Home

The city recently acquired this formerly-upscale residence for use as a group home for at-risk girls. But will the city budget actually provide sufficient funds to keep it going? Can dedicated social worker Claire Voyante, a product of the system herself, keep the house afloat and help her girls find a future? The recent addition of Holly Wood, a thrownaway girl, is straining her resources to their limits.

Claire doesn't worry about her tragic past, and neither should you. Nope, she's worried about these girls that people have never given a chance to be good - the abused, the downtrodden, the hurt. The girls say she's got eyes in the back of her head, and aren't sure they can trust her. That's okay. They will when they're ready. Meantime, Claire's got some battles to fight on their behalf.

Claire Voyante: female, adult, Sim Popularity/Fortune (Become Captain Hero) Gemini (4/8/8/3/2) Unemployed, OTH: Sports Traits: Natural Born Performer, Brave, Footballer, Animal Lover, Ambitious

Yeah, so, she stole something. It was just lipstick, don't have a cow. You've got to have the right things and do the right things and say the right things to hang with the right people. That's the only way to stay safe and get what you want.

Maddy Kroud: female, teen, Sim Popularity (Become General) Taurus (3/5/3/10/4) High School, OTH: Nature Traits: Easily Impressed , Couch Potato, Eco-Friendly, Cat Person

Someday, her father will come get her. Unlike some of the girls, Hope knows who her father is. He said he'd come get her, and he will. Any day now. She's not like these other girls. She has a future. And a family. You'll see. You'll see. You'll see.

Hope DeFirrd: female, teen, Sim Fortune (become Criminal Mastermind) Aquarius (4/4/6/7/4) High School, OTH: Nature Traits: Exciteable, Daredevil, Gatherer, Born Salesperson

Leti was abandoned into the system as an infant. If there's one thing she's learned, it's that the system is government of the kids, by the grownups, for the grownups. You can't trust Them. The nicer They seem, the harder They betray you.

Leti Go: female, teen, Sim Fortune (Become Hall of Famer) Sagittarius (2/3/10/6/4) High School, OTH: Sports Traits: Light Sleeper, Slob, Soccer Player, Frugal

Rose is afraid. If you ask her what she's afraid of, she'll be afraid to tell you. So please don't ask!

Rose Airey: female, teen, Sim Family (Graduate 3 Children from University) Cancer (6/0/6/5/8) High School, OTH: Tinkering Traits: Loner, Friendly, Perfectionist, Jealous

Paige has never been well a day in her life. Yeah, it sucks how inconvenient that is for the adults around her. Go away and let her read.

Paige Turner: female, teen, Sim Knowledge (Become Chief of Staff) Capricorn (10/1/0/10/4) High School, OTH: Film and Literature Traits: Neat, Inappropriate, Bookworm, Perceptive

Ronda has a heart full of love. So far everyone she's tried to give it to has taken it and run. She's never good enough, pretty enough, smart enough - whatever. How long before she has nothing left to give?

Ronda Corner: female, teen, Sim Romance (Become Celebrity Chef) Leo (1/10/4/5/5) High School, OTH: Music and Dance Traits: Schmoozer, Slob, Star Quality, Dislikes Children

Holly tried to like guys. She did. But girls are just...so...and guys aren't. So it appears that, after years of being a Good Girl, her entire existence is Wrong and she has no choice but to be Bad. So to hell with all of them and to hell with her too! To hell with everybody! Except Birnam. OMG what if Birnam somehow grows up Wrong, too?

Holly Wood: female, teen, Sim Family (Become Captain Hero) Virgo (10/0/10/2/3) High School, OTH: Science Traits: Neat, Adventurous, Bot Fan, Jealous

Challenges rolled for - round: Regular round: No special events - season: Large pet adoption: Your sims have decided it's too quiet without the pitter-patter of furry paws and have decided to adopt a pet. Make a visit to the local pet shop, call the pet adoption agency, or make a pet in CAS. - week: Regular Week: Nothing Major Happens -> The house will adopt a cat!

#the sims 2 #the custom uberhood #emerald heights #group home family #claire voyante #maddy kroud #hope defirrd #leti go #rose airey #paige turner #ronda corner #holly wood #round 1 #introduction post

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