#he spent three years with the same people growing and changing and learning and then all of a sudden he's thrust into this whole new team

[kimbapisnotsushi]

something about kageyama tobio being nineteen on the national team fresh out of high school and facing the whole world makes my heart ache.

it was everything he ever could have wanted. it was everything he ever did want, once. once kageyama tobio wanted to fly beyond the mountains he called home and soar into distant lands. once he wanted to climb to the top of the world until he was so high up that the sun and the moon and the stars were nothing but ants compared to him. once kageyama tobio wanted to do all these things alone — except he wouldn't be, not really, because he had someone who loved him and understood him and that was enough to shoulder a dream that blazed so bright it could burn him from the inside out with a single misstep.

and then kazuyo died and everything came crashing down like a satellite falling out of orbit, and the only thing tobio really wanted then was to heal from a heart full of broken glass.

at nineteen, he joins the national team. at nineteen, he plays at the olympics in brazil. at nineteen, kageyama tobio has everything he ever could have wanted, has everything he ever did want, once, but -

there are pieces of him missing, tobio thinks, a piece inside every single person who had taught him what it meant to love something so deeply it settles in your bones. there is a piece of him inside every single person who gave him a hand up out of the dark and pulled him onto steady ground. there are pieces of him that his new teammates will never know, will never understand, will never be able to put together and get the whole picture of who kageyama tobio is and why he seems so lonely when he is not alone, because kageyama tobio may be older and wiser and will not break so easily the way he did at the fragile age of fifteen, but there is NOTHING that can ease the ache of wanting the people he called home

#i don't know man i kind of get the feeling that kageyama was REALLY lonely that first year after high school #karasuno was his safety net!! it was where he learned to build himself back up piece by piece!! and he spent THREE YEARS DOING THAT! #he spent three years with the same people growing and changing and learning and then all of a sudden he's thrust into this whole new team #this is of course with the presumption that he was the first of the monster gen to make it on #and honestly i think he was #i think everyone else joined AFTER him #because it's the only thing that makes sense to me it's the only way he remains parallel to hinata during brazil arc #it means kageyama has to find his footing all over again!!! #it means just like hinata he has to find out who he is without the things that irrevocably changed him!!! #he's lonely even tho he's not alone and he's trying really really hard but all he wants are the people he loves to be with him!!! #there is no way he would NOT miss the people who gave him everything when he was lost in the dark #kageyama tobio #haikyuu #haikyuu!! #haikyuu meta #hq meta #sou says stuff

[wishesunderthestars]

10 Small Facts about Eunoia

Namjoon falls asleep last, only after he has heard Jimin’s and Jungkook’s breathing even out. He does the same when he starts sleeping in the same bed with the mc. He also wakes up instantly whenever she wakes up in the middle of the night.

John calls Alice monkey because she used to try to climb everything when she was a baby. People, bookshelves, chairs, and one memorable time the fridge

The mc sleeps better when she is close to the sea and she can hear the waves. She has tried ambiance but it rarely works.

The mc and Jacob met through Zayn and they were together for three years. It started well like most relationships do but they were both busy and in the last year they started growing apart, even though they were staying in the same house.

The mc used to have many friends from her hometown but as she grew more famous and busier she lost contact with them. She will see them sometimes when she visits her aunt and everyone is very nice to her but that’s it. She used to know them better than she knew herself when she was young and now she only knows them through the photos they post on social media and what her aunt tells her. She spent sixteen years of her life there and feels like a stranger in the town she grew up in. That’s why she rarely visits anymore.

Yoongi has a fantastic sense of hearing and he can recognize his pack by their breathing.

Jungkook goes religiously to the gym because he wants to be able to protect his pack

The mc’s movies have won sixteen Oscars

Jungkook changed four adoption centers before going to the shelter where he met Jimin and Namjoon because the workers at the center didn’t believe he would get adopted.

The first song Yoongi learned to play on the piano was Clair de Lune

#eunoia #bts x reader #bts hybrid au #bts #namjoon x reader #taehyung x reader #hoseok x reader #jimin x reader #jungkook x reader #yoongi x reader #seokjin x reader

[peaceofflights]

“What’s Three Years in the Eyes of Eternity?”

Rated: T for swearing, drug use, making out, slight references to sex.

Warning: slight age gap relationship. (And I made Wally 18).

Pairings: Wally Clark x Reader, Slight Wally Clark x Maddie Nears

Word Count: 4,000 (dear lord how did that happen.)

A/N: Honeslty I love this series and wanted to add some of my own stuff. It’s definitely not beta read so you have been warned. Might go back and edit later, but if I’m being honest probably not. If people like it I’m thinking of making it into a series.

Even though you knew a lot of people who went to Split River High you always felt lucky that you didn’t have to be one of them. Though you wouldn’t call yourself exceptionally talented, growing up in musical theatre gave you a certain edge compared to your peers and landed you across town at an arts school for “gifted” children when it came time for highschool. Before death you could count all the times you had been to the public highschool on one hand, all of which had been to see your brother’s football games. It felt like a long shot when you applied to teach the school’s summer camp of guys and dolls, but when you actually got the job it felt like a weight lifted off your shoulders.

Then again they did pull a weight off your shoulders… well the majority of the catwalk when it collapsed and crushed you to death, but that’s a technicality. Being 21 is hard enough, but being 21 for eternity surrounded by high schoolers, that’s your own personal hell.

Don’t take it the wrong way, all the ghosts were nice enough. You’d think because you and Mina had similar death experiences you would be fast friends…unfortunately that wasn’t the case. Due to her young age you and Mina seemed to only have a love for the arts in common. And unlike you, her accidental death seemed to make Mina bitter, never leaving the theater. Even though the theater felt most like home to you it made the place unbearable to be in, leaving you to roam the halls.

Most days were spent goofing off with Charley. He was a good kid, he reminded you a lot of your friends in highschool. You both liked to think that if you had been in school at the same time you would have been inseparable, but who really knows.

It took Rhonda some time to get used to you. Since you’re both known for a dry sense of humor it took a while to figure out if you were joking or insulting the other. Even still people couldn’t figure out if you were friends or sworn enemies… and honestly you two liked keeping it that way.

Then there was Wally Clark.

Six foot three golden retriever disguised as a jock Wally Clark. It’s funny because you spent your whole life making fun of football players and now you're trapped in purgatory with one. One that was funny, and smart, and always knew how to make you smile. Who if you actually were honest with yourself is the best part of being stuck at Split River High.

It didn’t matter what you two were doing whether it was golf cart joyriding, smoking the weed you found in some weird stoners kids’ lockers, or even learning the moves to dirty dancing (which for some reason there is a copy of stashed in the teacher’s lounge). Life with Wally was good.

But that didn’t change the fact that he was 18.

Something you reminded him of quite often, though Wally always seemed to have his own comebacks.

“What’s three years in the eyes of eternity?”

Or

“Technically I was born in the sixties… I’m older than you.”

Or his personal favorite;

“Can you shut up so we can make out already?”

Yeah, Wally Clark was probably the love of your after life… he just didn’t need to know that. It didn’t matter how many times you turned him down he always came back, patiently waiting for when you would be ready to say yes. It was your routine, and you were more than happy to keep it that way. But I guess Maddie Nears was the day that changed.

—————————

“y/n/n, y/n/n, y/n/n”

You could already hear Wally running down the hall calling your nickname even before he turned the corner. You couldn’t help but laugh and play along.

“Wally, Wally, Wally.”

Suddenly you two were standing face to face, maybe just a step too close for dramatic effect. His over the top waving at you made you crack a smile, making you completely miss the small blonde standing behind him.

“Y/N there is someone I’d like you to meet… Y/N, Maddie, Maddie, Y/N.”

Your smile dropped for all of half a second before you forced it back onto your face. New ghosts might not come very often but they definitely stuck around so you needed to make a good impression. You reached out to shake her hand, she took it and smiled.

She took in your appearance for a moment before cracking a joke; “what are you? Some kind of camp counselor?” Gesturing to your tie dyed shirt and jean shorts.

“Um, yeah actually.” You replied, scratching the back of your head.

You both awkwardly laughed, shifting your weight from side to side, waiting for the conversation to be over. It was clear you two weren’t about to be best friends. But it was one ghost, not much in your life was going to change.

——————————

It felt like your whole life had changed. In the span of a week you went from having your friends whenever you wanted them, to feeling like Maddie was taking up all of their time.

You weren’t dumb, you knew Maddie was going to need friends here too, and if you looked at it objectively there were only so many options for her to choose from. It was stupid to feel jealousy when they hadn’t really gone anywhere at all. It’s not like any of you could roam too far.

But your days spent gossiping with Charley were now spent reading books in the library. And nights of golf carting with Wally were now spent laying alone on the football field gazing at the stars. Even Rhonda seemed too busy for you, all three seemingly absorbed in Maddie’s recent murder.

You were currently on your way to see what Dawn was up to when you heard a familiar sound coming from a classroom.

But it couldn’t be.

You swore your ears were deceiving you until you heard a familiar voice say;

“You’re telling me you’ve never seen Dirty Dancing? Come on Maddie, it’s a classic!”

Your ears weren’t deceiving you at all! That was the sound of Hungry Eyes playing through one of the tv’s dragged into a classroom.

Look it shouldn’t have bothered you, it’s just a stupid movie. Well not a stupid at all, Dirty Dancing was one of the best movies of all time. Maddie was dumb for not having seen it in life, so obviously it was a must watch in her afterlife. But this wasn’t about the movie at all, but what it represented: this was yours and Wally’s movie. The movie you both knew every line to. The movie that you’ve spent years trying to learn the choreography to, and he was watching it with another girl.

“A classic? I don’t know if I would go that far. Was this movie even out when you were alive?”

You should’ve gone in there and yelled at him. You should have told him off for doing your special thing with somebody else. You should have at least listened outside the door to the rest of their conversation, but you didn’t.

——————————

Ever since Maddie joined your little group your life felt like it had been a whirlwind. You didn’t even realize just how much you were missing out on or how much time had passed until you walked into the school gymnasium.

“Shit, is it homecoming already!? I’m sorry Wally, how could I forget?” You exclaimed as you plopped down in front of the hand painted banner the crew was currently working on.

How could you have forgotten about the homecoming game? Despite the game not meaning anything to you, you knew it meant everything to Wally. Sure, you never went to a homecoming game while you were alive, but now that you knew how much it meant to him you spent every year making it as special to Wally as possible.

You along with the rest of the support group made sure to make him feel appreciated. With a homemade banner and decorations, Wally was well celebrated on his death date.

Plus it always made up for the fact that every year he asked you to the homecoming dance, and every year you said no.

“I’m 21, I don’t need to go to another shitty school dance.”

Or

“You really want to go to the dance with the school chaperone?”

So every year Wally went to every school dance alone. And every year you spent the night locked away in some random space blasting Hair or whatever music you could get your hands on.

It was better that way. It helped you keep some remembrance of your old life. It was often difficult to remember you had a life outside the school before you died. And it kept Wally from realizing that he could do so much better than you. The closer he got to you emotionally the more he’d notice he’s way better than the musical theatre dork you are. Even in your adult life you were a loser, you came back to teach summer camp because you couldn’t pay your bills.

“You okay cherry pop, or did the mere sight of lover boy’s ass send you into a coma?”

It wasn’t until you heard Rhonda’s snide remark that you were pulled out of your spiraling thoughts.

That’s when you realized that Wally had left the gym, with Maddie (figures), and you (probably) stared at his ass while he did.

“Hey, what's wrong with you lately? You seem even more moody and distant than usual, and that’s saying something coming from you.”

You shrugged at Rhonda’s words “I don’t really want to talk about.”

“You think I want to talk through your oh woe is me crap? Trust me I don’t. But I’m getting tired of dealing with everyone’s stupid problems by myself, so spill tootsie roll.”

Your second shrug of the conversation had Rhonda groaning, but quickly cut herself off when she realized what all this was about.

“That is what this is about? You know for a college girl you really are stupid. Do you really think Wally could ever replace you? That boy hasn’t stopped drooling since your heart stopped. If you were half as smart as you think you are you’d get your head out of your ass and finally go lay one on him.”

And just as quickly as the conversation with Rhonda started she was out of the door. But this time you knew your friend was right, you needed to fix the situation and fast.

—————————-

In a way you were killing two birds with one stone. There was no way you could go to the game in your t-shirt and shorts, for some reason even ghosts got cold. But looking at yourself in the bathroom mirror dressed in lost and found stolen jeans and Wally’s jacket you couldn’t help but feel confident.

You knew it was cheesy to show up to Wally’s football game wearing his letterman jacket and express your undying love for him. But you knew Wally, and he was absolutely going to love it.

You gave yourself one more once over before you decided to head out, trying to fix your forever slightly sweaty hair from the hot summer sun. This was it, this was your moment.

As the game started you quickly snuck out to the bleachers to hide out until the perfect moment. This part was nerve racking, but also probably your favorite. Watching Wally in his element was enduring and made you think about all the time you had missed out on by his side, all because you were too stubborn to tell him the truth. You ducked down as you saw him start to climb the bleachers to sit down next to his mother, but seemed to be caught by an entirely different ghost.

“Girl, I hardly recognized up here all by yourself in your-“

Charley cut himself off when he noticed what you were wearing.

“Has he seen it yet?” He asked with a special glint in his eyes.

Your cool and collected attitude was thrown out the window as the strong blush on your cheeks gave you away. “No, he hasn’t. I was waiting until he was done with his quality time with his mom to surprise him. It’s not too much is it? I know I should have just sat him down and told him-“

“No, no, no trust me, he’s going to love it. That boy is going to die when he sees you.”

“Hasn’t he already done that?” You softly laughed at your own joke, but Charley just deadpans at you, rubbing his temples dramatically like you’re the Bain of his existence.

“You’re gooood.” He quickly drops his annoyed act to smile warmly at you. “Wally lives for grand gestures, he might actually cry.”

You just smiled at your friend. He’s right about one thing, if Wally loves anything it’s a grand gesture, and now felt like the best time to do it, but as you scan the bleachers you realize he’s nowhere to be seen.

————————————

It felt like eternity until you finally found Wally. The game ended about thirty minutes prior when you finally see him walking behind the stadium, extra swagger to his step.

“Hey Wally! I’ve been looking for you all over! What’s got you in such a fantastic mood?” You giggled to yourself like a schoolgirl, this is it.

“I just asked Maddie to the homecoming dance and she said yes! You know as friends, I mean we’re going as friends. But she’s new and I figured it would be nice for her to know she has a friend In the afterlife. It also gives me someone to go to the dance with and -“ he continued to ramble on but you were no longer listening.

Your heart felt like it lived at the bottom of your stomach. It was silly of you to assume that he’d still want to go to the dance with you after how many times you’ve rejected him. It’s silly that at your age you want to go to the dance at all. These were things you never even thought about in your adult life, but here you were about to cry because some stupid 18 year old jock would rather go with a girl who was willing to immediately agree to a date with him instead of some bitch who’s turned him down how many times in the last fifteen years. Yes it all made perfect sense to you, but it didn’t stop you from wanting to cry yourself to sleep in the girls locker room.

“Hey, is that my jacket?” His words finally took hold in your ears.

“Um yeah!” You stuttered. “My clothes aren’t exactly weather appropriate, and I figured you wouldn’t need it tonight. I hope that was okay.”

“Yeah of course! That’s what friends are for!” He smiled, ruffling your hair before moonwalking out.

———————————

Of all the things you thought you would do this year, getting help from Mina wasn’t even on your metaphorical bingo sheet. But there you were, a hour before the dance having Mina help you sew together a dress fit for homecoming.

You thought it would take a lot more to get her to help you, but her assessment of the situation was simple.

“All technical work is underappreciated by the actors.”

You weren’t sure how that translated to your current conversation, but she wasn’t wrong. We were both stagehands, and stagehands stuck together.

With an extra set of hands putting together a dress wasn’t as difficult as you thought it would be, and for the first time since your death you were ready for the homecoming dance.

——————————

Running your fingers over your baby pink dress you spotted the others standing in a circle by the punch bowl. You wiped the sweat from your hands onto your bodice before making your way over to them. If you had a functioning heart it would be beating faster than ever before.

“Hey guys, fancy seeing you here” You smiled, stealing a sip of Charley’s drink. Your false sense of chill would make others believe you did this every year, but the tapping of your heel on the floor made it obvious that you did not.

“Fancy seeing you here? That’s all you’ve got to say? You look gorgeous!” Charley the ever kind soul that he is says, giving you a half hug in the process.

“You do baby cakes! Who knew you had such nice tits under all that tie dye.” Rhonda’s voice cracked in her signature vocal fry, pinching at your waist trying to get a better look at your figure.

“Mhm” You smiled. “I’ve missed out on a lot of these things. I definitely owe it to my friends to make up on some lost time.” You looked directly at Wally as you finished your sentence, he swallowed hard before averting his gaze. He quickly put on a false over the top smile and grabbed Maddie’s hand while she was taking a sip of her punch. “Come on Maddie let’s dance!”

———————————

Wally POV

Wally laughed as he tossed and turned Maddie around the room flamboyantly, but couldn’t help but watch you through the corner of his eye sighing into your punch as you twirl your pinky finger along the glass.

“You know I think you came with the wrong girl.” Maddie said, breaking Wally from his trance.

“What?”

“Ever since she walked into the room you can’t stop staring at her. It’s clear that you like her. Wally we came as friends, if you want to go ask her to dance it’s not going to hurt my feelings.”

Wally wiggled Maddie’s arms with humor but the look on his face was anything but.

“It doesn’t matter how I feel about her, she’s made it very clear she’s not interested. Do you know how many times she’s turned me down in the last fifteen years? Way too many times for me to deem her into me.” He stated as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“All I’m saying is that a girl doesn’t wear your jacket to your death date and show up to a dance she’s never once wanted to go to unless she’s at least a little bit interested.”

“Or something like that.” Wally replied back before smacking his happy go lucky façade back on attempting to teach Maddie his moonwalk moves.

———————

Y/N POV

That’s when you heard it, your song.

“And this one was requested by that weird kid, you know who you are. Next time put on a tie.” The dj said dramatically in the annoying voice only dj’s are allowed to talk in.

“(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” begins to vibrate through the gym as Maddie Nears comes to stand next to you.

“I had Simon request the song for you.” Maddie says simply looking off into the distance with you at Wally and the rest of your friends across the room, you had been too busy sulking to sit with them.

“I know it’s kind of your guy’s song.” She continues; “ I figured you two could use a little push.”

You're immediately puzzled. “How did you-“

“That dude is absolutely obsessed with you.” She smiled. “Plus when we watched the movie he wouldn’t shut up about the fact that it was your favorite and you guys had spent the last fifteen years memorizing the choreography, it only felt right.”

You gave her a big hug before whispering in her ear “thank you”.

“Now hurry up” she laughed, “This song is only like five minutes long.”

You rolled your eyes at her before making your way across the room. Yes, this was dramatic, and yes it should have embarrassed you, but for once it didn’t. When you finally made it across what felt like an ocean of people you tapped Wally on the shoulder even though he was already looking at you, stretched out your hand and said;

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner”

Wally smiled before shaking his head and grabbed your hand leading to the middle of the dance floor.

It didn’t matter that the song was already halfway over, you started your choreography regardless, laughing the whole way through it. Every part of it felt like a flirtatious inside joke. It made you realize just how much you missed your best friend. You held him as close to you as you could in peaceful silence until he stepped back from you three steps nodding his head. This of course was the best part so you nodded back and started stepping backwards.

As he lovingly put it each time, if you fell you fell. He would always break your fall, you were both dead anyway. However, just like actual Johnny and Baby you had practiced the move in the pool countless times before you got it right. Now despite the time away from the routine you trusted that both of you knew this lift like the back of your hand, and you were not disappointed when you got a running head start into your jump and were caught gracefully by a strong set of arms.

When Wally placed you down onto the ground again he smiled, pulling you as close as humanly possible.

“You know, I always thought the point of us learning this dance was so we could pull it out at every school function and show all these other losers who’s who.” He laughed clearly, making a joke out of the unspoken.

“They can’t see us anyway” You smirked, resting your arms around his shoulders. “But you're right, I’m sorry it took me this long to come to the dance with you.”

“Sweetheart, have you already forgotten? Maddie is my date to dance.” He smiled, lovingly pushing you away before grabbing you again as fast as he could.

“But I can give you the next best thing,” he said, looking down at you. “Be my date next year?”

“I can do you one better,” You smiled. “Go to prom with me?”

“I don’t knowwwww darling, might bring down my popularity to go to the prom with a chaperone.”

“Hey Wally?” You boink him very lightly on the nose. “Can you shut up so we can make out already?”

You didn’t have to tell him twice. His mouth was on yours in less time than you had to take a breath. Immediately you feel like you need to breathe but if lack of oxygen is your only problem right now then you’ll gladly take it.

His arms moved from rubbing up and down your arms to slowly being snaked around your waist pulling you in tight. You stayed wrapped up in his musky scent for what felt like eternity. You felt his hands slowly start to migrate south when you hear a low whistle from behind you.

“Alright kids break it up, nobody here wants to watch you two defile each other on top of the snack bar.” Of course Rhonda would be the one to break the two of you up after pawing at each other like cats in heat. But she was right about one thing, you definitely felt like a kid again in the best possible way.

“Haha laugh it up Rhonda, you’re just jealous. I know everyone wants to ride the pony.” He smirked, giving her a joking wink.

“Alright Stallion.” You said patting him on the shoulder. “Time to go.”

“Where are we going?” He asked as he intertwined his fingers with yours.

“The teacher’s lounge.” You said giving him a similar wink he just gave to your friends.

While you tried to catch your breath as he dragged you through the halls at dare you say a record pace, you realized Split River High might not be as bad as you thought

#school spirits #wally clark x reader #wally clark #school spirits fanfic #maddie nears #wally x maddie #school spirits fanfiction

[planerot]

Radiator Spring residents ranked on how trustworthy they are in the kitchen

(All these are intended to be humanized headcanons, but can be interpreted however you like. Also, quick content warning for food and a brief allusion to mold)

Flo - She literally owns a diner, (I did some googling and turns out, even though it's called Flo's V8 café, it's a diner. The disneyland website describes the IRL version in car's land as a 'Route 66-inspired diner' ) she makes the best food in town no questions asked. She's the one who makes everyone in Radiator Springs their birthday cakes and dinners each year, and has their favorite flavors and foods memorized by heart. If she catches wind that someone in town in feeling under the weather, that person will have a big pot of soup delivered to their doorstep before the end of the day. She is also very good about keeping her workspaces extremely clean due to the health and safety standards that come with running a diner. 10/10, she is the best by a very large margin.

Doc Hudson - During Doc's earlier years, back when he was still racing, he was a very mediocre cooking. He made stuff that was incredibly bland, boring, stupid easy, or a combination of all three. After his accident and moving to Radiator Spring, he was kind of forced to learn to make more interesting meals after eating nothing but mac and cheese, sandwiches, breakfast foods and other such things for a month straight and growing positively sick of it (because we all know his self isolating ass would NOT want to accept any invites to eat or, god forbid, risk accidentally socializing while at Flo's when he was fresh off a life changing crash). He, overtime, forced himself to learn how to actually cook and thus accidentally became one of the most talented cooks in Radiator Springs, second only to Flo.

Guido - He spent a lot of time in a tightknit, small Italian village, living with Mama Topolino, I feel it's very likely he picked up some tips, tricks and recipes during his time there. The vast majority of what he knows how to make is Italian food, but so long as he has a recipe, I think he could make anything.

Luigi - Basically the same as Guido. Only reason I put him below Guido is because he doesn't have the basically super human reflexes and motor control Guido has, thus making him more prone to spills and mess in the kitchen.

Red - The issue with writing any headcanons for Red is that he's more a gag then an actual character. I did a bunch of digging on his wiki page and all of it can be summed up to 'He likes flowers, is a firefigher and incredibly sensitive'...so I worked with that best I could. I think he'd be pretty decent at cooking since firefighters usually take turns cooking for their team, so anyone in that career usually has to learn to cook something actually edible. Red likely learnt how to cook during his very early days of firefighting before he moved to Radiator Springs. His dishes are definitely simpler, but that doesn't mean he can't make some very tasty, filling dishes. He takes enjoyment in serving his food to others and absolutely will burst into tears if someone insults his cooking.

Lizzie - Lizzie is the stereotypical baker grandma. A lot of the recipes she makes are pretty old, but that doesn't make them damn tasty. Her memory issues make baking a bit harder, but she still manages just fine. Baking helps keep her up and moving, even if it's only in her kitchen

Sally - She's never really had a knack for cooking and does her best from what people have taught her through the years. She can make a lot of really good pasta dishes, but other then that she doesn't really excel at anything.

Sheriff - Incredibly average. He's more the type to get food from Flo's or buy prepacked stuff then he is the type to actually make himself anything. When he does actually bother, all the stuff he makes is pretty good but absolutely nothing to write home about. He's more the type of person someone asks to pick up groceries for a meal then actually make the meal.

Fillmore - 100% more a baker then a cook. He first picked up baking to make weed brownies and ended up really enjoying the whole process. His recipes are very hit or miss though since he likes trying to make his desserts more healthy in some way. Sometimes this means they just taste a little off, and sometimes this means they taste like he just tossed sugar and cocoa powder in a bowl with some dried hay and baked it. He is also a hazard in a kitchen since he sometimes he gets munchies while high and will completely forget stuff in the oven, thus leading to multiple fire alarm scares.

Ramone - God bless his heart, but this man can barely cook. Flo has tried to teach him, but he just cannot seem to quite get it, often burning things, adding to much seasoning or accidentally forgetting ingredients. He loves spending time with Flo in the kitchen, so he gets relegated to vegetable peeling or pot stirring, which he very happily does because it means he gets to hang out with his amazing wife. The one thing he does excellent at is decorating. It took him a couple tries to get the technique down, but he is an amazing cake decorator, his years of painting cars meaning he has a scarily steady hand and very keen artistic eye. Flo always lets him decorate the cupcakes/cakes when she makes them for people's birthdays and they always turn out gorgeous.

Sarge - The issue with Sarge is that he refuses to toss anything out. He isn't good at cooking at all. That man does not give a shit how black his scrambled eggs are or how his chicken wings could probably be used as bricks, he will eat them. Whenever someone asks why he eats obviously terrible food, he just says something about how this is nothing compared to how terrible food was in the military. He's grown an iron stomach and hates wasting food even when it would probably be better for his health just to toss out the suspiciously fuzzy loaf of bread.

Lightning - He has mostly lived his adult life living off of fast food, microwave dinners, canned soup and whatever he can eat when people invite him over for dinner. He could probably be a very competent chef if he was taught how to, but he is a bit to embarrassed to admit it to someone else.

Mater - Do not let him near a kitchen he WILL burn it down. For the love of god he is clumsy as fuck and will somehow seriously injure himself or anyone if left to his own devices. He likes the idea of cooking for himself and his friends, but in practice it usually ends with either a fire, a hospital visit, or some horrid combination of both.

#god this is such a long post sorry about any typos #it's a bit hard to proofread a post this large #flo #doc hudson #guido #luigi #red #lizzie #sally carrera #sheriff #fillmore #sarge #lightning mcqueen #mater #pixar cars #cars fandom

[rabbithaver]

i finally decided to actually write out some of my major headcanons for Silver. i like him a lot as a character and i think people overlook him too much lmao

I genuinely believe that Silver has been decoupled from the timeline completely. This means that changes to the future made in the present do not affect him. He may not remember the specific events of 06, but he absolutely remembers growing up in an apocalypse and frequently has lines that support this in the comics. Him being unaffected by changes to the timeline explains why his personal history has not changed, despite the future being saved multiple times. ALSO, Ian Flynn has confirmed that Silver is not in control of when or how he travels through time -- I believe that whatever or whoever is sending him back and forth is the same thing that separated him from the timeline.

Silver is deaf, pushing about 70% hearing loss. It's not congenital -- his hearing sucks because he's from a timeline where things blew up constantly and he had no hearing protection. He relies mostly on lip-reading and guesswork, but wants to learn ASL when he gets a chance... if he gets the chance. Time is wibbly-wobbly for him. (I should note that this one is personal to me -- I myself am HoH due to otosclerosis and I'm definitely projecting my declining hearing on him lmao)

I know Silver is canonically the exact same height and weight as Shadow and Silver, but I personally don't find that very... likely. All three of these dudes are 3'3" and 77lbs EXACTLY? Nah. Shadow and Sonic, maybe, but not Silver. I headcanon Silver as being smaller and lighter than the other hedgehogs because he grew up in a timeline where food was hard to find, and thus didn't grow as much. He's very scrawny and basically has almost no meat on his bones, but you'd never guess because he's got The Fluff.

Elaborating on the food thing: his relationship with eating is probably totally screwed. Think about it: he spent his whole youth eating whatever he could get his hands on, and he probably had to eat as quickly as he could so he could stay on the move. The idea of eating to enjoy the flavor is like, completely alien to him. He also tends to stash food away for later, as he's not used to knowing when his next meal will be. He does it entirely out of habit, even when food is abundant.

Silver's immune system probably sucks. Every time he goes back to the past, he catches some illness. This is largely because he's not used to the pathogens 200 years earlier, but I also like to imagine this is because he's got some sort of autoimmune disorder.

You cannot tell me this boy does not have asthma. I am aware that this is kind of a fandom in-joke, but it makes total sense. If he grew up in a world of smoke and flames, his lungs probably look like burnt toast. Someone get him an inhaler please.

Silver has PTSD and severe anxiety, both due to his personal history growing up in a hellscape and also because repeatedly going back to the future to find his time in disarray due to events in the present is probably traumatic as all hell. His biggest trigger is most likely building collapse, but I can't imagine he doesn't have kind of a hard time with explosions after the Eggman War. His cheerful optimism and helpful attitude is his effort to deflect from his trauma.

Expanding on the anxiety thing; Silver struggles when he doesn't have something to do. We actually see this in canon in the 2022 Annual story "Future Growth." He has no idea how to function when he doesn't have a mission to focus on. Being in the past with no clear directive is insanely triggering for him and he totally fails to cope.

While I'm talking about his mental illnesses, I want to make it explicitly clear: he is REALLY good at hiding this stuff. His friends in the Resistance/Restoration don't find out about his issues for years, and this is specifically because he instinctually hides anything that could be perceived as a weakness. He's been conditioned to hide any and all weaknesses because it was the only way to survive in the post-apocalypse. Being visibly affected by your trauma is a quick and easy way to get dead, so he simply... doesn't. This kid cannot stop masking his trauma at all until he's literally at his breaking point.

There is no way he doesn't have intense Survivors' Guilt. Going back to the Metal Virus arc in the comics, he's the only survivor of a shuttle crash in Issue #25. All of those people died. They actually died - if they were zombots, they would've survived that crash, but because they were still healthy, they didn't have the ability to recover. Silver probably feels that because he was trying so hard to get survivors to the shuttle, he led those people to their deaths. I specifically am pointing to his dialogue here as evidence of this:

He probably dreads going back to the future. Like, think about it. He's admitted to being lonely (IDW #8) in his own time -- probably because his history separates him from the average person! The only friends he really has are in the past, the vast majority of whom are likely long dead by the time he's born. And while his friends are always happy to see him, I can imagine he has a lot of anxiety thinking about the fact that they inevitably start to associate his arrival with something bad coming down the line. That's rough, buddy.

He's very proud of his ruff and he takes really good care of it. It's super thick and very soft. However, when he's having a rough time, he's not as thorough, and it tends to show. If you know him really well, you can get an idea of his current mental health just by looking at the state of his chest fur. A happy Silver is fluffy, a struggling Silver looks like he was left in the washing machine.

Silver has a really hard time with media that involves apocalyptic worlds. He knows that it's just fiction, but it reminds him of the fact that he's the only one who remembers the apocalyptic hellscape he grew up in. It reminds him that as much as his friends want to support him, they can't truly understand what he's been through; his background is only real to him. It just leaves him feeling lonely and sad, so he avoids it as much as possible.

Silver doesn't sleep well in real beds. Maybe it's just a lifetime of growing up surrounded by an apocalypse, but he has a really hard time getting comfortable in a real bed. For months during the Eggman War, he'd spend hours tossing and turning before finally giving up and curling up on the floor in a corner. It's just not what he's used to at all.

anyway i think about him a normal amount :)

#terin.txt #silver the hedgehog #sonic the hedgehog #sonic headcanons #idw silver

[andloveisenough]

Transcript of Vettel's announcement he's retiring, by Reddit user OutlandishnessPure2

I hereby announce my retirement from Formula One by the end of the 2022 season.

Probably I should start with a long list of people to thank now. But I feel it is more important to explain the reasons behind my decision.

I love this sport, it has been central to my life since I can remember. But as much as there is life on track, there is my life off track too. Being a racing driver has never been my sole identity. I very much believe in identity by who we are and how we treat others, rather than what we do.

Who am I?

I am Sebastian, father of three children and husband to a wonderful woman. I am curious and easily fascinated by passionate or skilled people. I am obsessed with perfection. I am tolerant and feel we all have the same rights to live, no matter what we look like, where we come from and who we love.

I love being outside. I love nature and its wonders. I'm stubborn and impatient. I can be really annoying. I like to make people laugh. I like chocolate and the smell of fresh bread. My favourite colour is blue. I believe in change and progress, and that every little bit makes a difference. I am an optimist and I believe people are good.

Next to racing, I have grown a family and I love being around them. I have grown other interests outside Formula One. My passion for racing and Formula One comes with lots of time spent away from them and takes a lot of energy. Committing to my passion the way I did and the way I think it is right does no longer go side by side with my wish to be a great father and husband.

The energy it takes to become one with the car and the team, to chase perfection, takes focus and commitment. My goals have shifted from winning races and fighting for championships, to seeing my children grow, passing on my values, helping them up when they fall, listening to them when they need me, not having to say good bye, and most importantly, being able to learn from them and let them inspire me.

Children are our future. Further I feel there is so much more to explore and learn, about life and about myself.

Speaking of the future, I feel we live in very decisive times and how we all shape these next years will determine our lives. My passion comes with certain aspects that I have learnt to dislike. They might be solved in the future but the will to apply that change has to grow much, much stronger, and has to be leading to action today. Talk is not enough, and we cannot afford to wait. There is no alternative. The race is underway.

My best race? Still to come.

I believe in moving forwards and moving on. Time is a one way street and I want to go with the times. Looking back is only going to slow you down.

I look forward to race down unknown tracks and I will be finding new challenges. The marks I left on track will stay until time and rain will wash them away. New ones will be put down. Tomorrow belongs to those shaping today. The next corner is in good hands, as the new generation has already turned in. I believe there is still a race to win.

Farewell, and thanks for letting me share the track with you. I loved every bit of it.

A truly heartfelt message.

#sebastian vettel #f1 #aston martin #red bull racing #ferrari #vettel

[gravessyard]

To Have Loved and Lost

Notes from the Crypt: Hullo, I like to write stuff. My latest obsession has been Genshin, and I'm a huge sucker for angst so I hope you enjoy. Edit: Chapter 2 now out

Tags: GN!Reader, angst, cheating

Summary: Something is wrong, and it took you 2 months to find out what.

It started with week 1 where you first observed that Diluc’s lingering touches on Jean mimicked the same ones he gave you. The way he brushed a strand of hair behind her ear or squeezed her shoulder when they’re in deep discussion regarding Mondstadt’s safety. You never missed the way his hand would touch the small of her back when he was walking with her through the crowded streets of the city, with you acting as third wheel behind them. Once you even saw him rest his hand on her thigh when you and your boyfriend were having dinner with Jean and Kaeya at Good Hunter. Though it was quick, your keen observation was quicker.

Week 2 Diluc left you a note saying he wasn’t going to be home for the next x days and to not wait up for him. It would follow up with an explanation of how he was going on a mission with Jean, and you started to grow suspicious. You didn’t want to think too hard about them, you thought deep in your heart that he truly loved you and that the mission was surely to fight monsters or the abyss order to further keep Mond safe. You pushed down the dark feeling starting to eat away at you and decided an evening of self-care was in order.

By week 3, Kaeya noticed how stressed you were, with you juggling your work along with this new burden on your relationship with his brother. He can’t say he didn’t try to help when he went to the tavern during a shift Diluc was working and tried to use his charm to get him to at least see things from your perspective, only to be cut off early and kicked out. He thought how odd the entire exchange was, normally when it came to concerns involving you, Diluc would have dropped everything to make sure you were well taken care of and not, well, neglected as Kaeya suspects is happening.

4 weeks in, Kaeya suggests you take in a change of scenery, seeing as your current predicament is starting to affect your health. It took a lot of convincing but in the end, you decided 2 weeks back in your hometown of Inazuma should help you get back into the right mindset. In the past you were stuck outside of the nation, being in Mondstadt the day the decree began, and the nation had closed off entirely. Kaeya knew how much it had affected you; he was the first person who came across you after news broke out, and he was one of the people who helped ease you through your darkest moments following the decree. No one had any idea how long the nation would have been in solitude, and for you that meant you would never see your closest family and friends ever again. At least, until the traveler came to Teyvat and seemed to fix one nation’s problem after the other.

Following the abolishing of the decree, you felt a tremendous weight lift off your shoulders, grateful to the traveler for saving your nation. Of course, you made sure to return as quick as possible to check on everyone near and dear to you, but by then you had established a relationship with Mondstadt’s wine tycoon, having spent time with the Ragnvindr brothers and Jean after all. After reassurances of future visits, you return to the city of freedom for what you thought was your fairy tale ending, unaware of the nightmare ahead. Bidding farewells to your friends in Mond, you were personally escorted by the Calvary Captain to the boats of Liyue, where you were then shipped off to Inazuma so you could finally relax.

Weeks 5 and 6 were spent catching up with old friends. You were relieved when you first learned of Gorou and Itto’s safety following the overturn of the decree, and from then the three of you would make it a tradition to meet up at least once a year for the infamous hotpot game Thoma had once introduced you. Though he was often busy, Thoma would somehow still find time to spend with you, especially since he thought it was funny how he was a Mondstadter stuck in Inazuma and you were an Inazuman stuck in Mondstadt. You make sure to make your rounds along the island, catching up with the Yashiro commissioner and his sister, the peppy fireworks master and even visiting the Grand Narukami Shrine to chat with Yae Miko. You even pulled a fortune slip for fun but felt a cold chill run down your spine when you pulled a Great Misfortune, your thoughts immediately filled with Diluc and Jean. As quick as they came, you again push that feeling aside, you came home to stop worrying, why waste all that effort now? Before your trip came to an end, you made sure to take part in the upcoming festival, any previous lingering thoughts forgotten while you made special memories with your special friends.

Upon your return in week 7, you opened the door to the winery only to find your boyfriend is very much balls deep in the acting grand master. The very thing your gut was trying to warn you about and here it was, manifested. You froze, taking in the trail of clothes leading up to the couch and their shocked faces, clearly, they both forgot that you were to return today. You wouldn’t be surprised if they had forgotten about you altogether. Ice filled your veins, you wanted to scream, to scream about how you had suspected them of flirting with each other behind your back, you wanted so badly to tear into them about their lingering touches and lovey dovey gazes, but your mouth didn’t move. All at once, the pair were scrambling to cover themselves, telling you that it wasn’t what it looked like, that there was an explanation, but you were preoccupied in turning on your heel and walking away from the scene. You heard a shout of your name, and you broke out into a sprint, you didn’t care where you went but you had to get away away AWAY.  The more shouts you heard the faster you ran, the wind seeming to guide you to the city, thankfully since your vision was too blurry with all the tears you were shedding. Even after you crossed the entrance gates you didn’t stop, the adrenaline keeping you going until you ran into a body, taking them with you to the floor. With lungs full of air, you finally let your voice be heard in a flurry of pathetic sobs, clinging to the person you full body tackled, uncaring of who it was. To Kaeya’s surprise, he wasn’t expecting to see you so soon, sure he was aware that you had returned from Inazuma but because of how late it was, he was expecting to see you the following day so he could ask about your adventure. To see you in such a state could only confirm his suspicions of his brother having an affair with the acting grand master.

He had his suspicions for a few weeks now but didn’t think to act on them until your trip to Inazuma, where he could use the time to tail Diluc and Jean and attempt to get any information. At first it started out with him tagging along with the duo, from inviting them for drinks or to get food to even awkwardly interrupting their pseudo dates when he saw them both around the city. In the 2 weeks you were gone, he had noticed how Diluc and Jean would act much closer than they usually did, almost like a couple. At one point Kaeya had to watch from the sidelines to witness more acts like this, like Diluc bringing Jean flowers or how Jean would leave the city with what appeared to be an overnight bag on more than one occasion. It was clear to Kaeya that the pair were harboring feelings for the other, but to do it while he’s in a relationship with you? He never thought his brother would stoop so low. With the information he’s gathered, he was thinking of a way to break the news to you gently, the last thing he wanted was for you to walk in on their affair, but it breaks his heart to see he was too late, as you had done just that and was now crying in his chest, your form trembling in his arms.

“D-Diluc…. A-And Jean…!”, you hiccupped, and Kaeya pressed his lips to your hair, shushing you gently while he rubbed your back.

“I know doll… I had my suspicions. Come on, let’s get you someplace safe”, he sighed, helping you up to your feet so he could walk you back to his apartment. Even in the dead of night, the city wasn’t void of people and Kaeya would hate for anyone else to see you in the state you’re in and try to pry into what happened. You whimpered, clinging to his arm while you continued to shake, full on sprinting to the city from the winery is no easy feat, now that the adrenaline is gone your muscles were screaming at you to stop moving. You wanted badly to just drop right there and let the ground swallow you whole, but you knew you’d never rest in peace until you found out why the bastard had done this to you. You took a few steps with Kaeya until you heard your name called out by the very man who broke the heart you entrusted him with.

“y/n, please wait...!”, Diluc pants, finally catching up after he watched you dash from his front door. He managed to get his pants on but couldn’t fully button his shirt up, leaving his chest bare for you and his brother to see the marks littering his skin. Kaeya felt disgusted at the sight, disgusted at his brother, and disgusted with himself for not doing more to prevent this. He opened his mouth to begin to tear him a new one when he felt the temperature in the air drop significantly. For a moment he thought he had lost control of his vision, but when he saw snow begin to fall from the sky, he looked over at you and felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand. Your face was blank, the light in your eyes gone and your tear stains were beginning to frost over. The sight alone was enough to trouble the brothers, both standing in shock while you continued to stare at Diluc, taking in his image. His disheveled hair, messy clothes and how his lips were still a little puffy, no doubt from a heavy make out session. You thought of all the red flags you had ignored, the times you had pushed aside your own gut feeling in favor of the ruined man in front of you. Memories flashed through your head, from the day you met Diluc to the many dates he took you on and finally the day he asked you to be his, each memory bringing more tears back to your eyes, but they didn’t fall.

“….. I wanna go”, you murmured to Kaeya, pressing closer to his side while you took a deep breath in, willing your heart to stop aching. The snow stopped falling, whatever did fall was already starting to melt while the air was returning to its normal temperature. By the time the sun rises there would be no indication of the temporary snow day the city experienced. Kaeya placed a hand on the small of your back, turning you both and guiding you away from Diluc Ragnvindr, the man you once loved, now lost. He could only watch you walk away, the consequences of his impulsive actions eating away at him. The only thing he could do was turn around and begin his walk of shame back to the winery, back to Jean.

Week 8 started with you finding out the supposed love of your life was cheating on you, but you were also on your new journey of self-discovery and reaching new bonds with the Calvary Captain of the Knights of Favonius.

Epitaph: This piece can also be found on AO3, I have also thought of adding another chapter, maybe. Soo,, about that new Diluc skin? >:3c

#genshin impact #genshin impact fic #genshin fic #genshin impact angst #genshin angst #genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader #diluc ragnvindr #diluc #genshin diluc #genshin impact diluc #kaeya alberich #kaeya #genshin kaeya #genshin impact kaeya #jean gunnhildr #genshin jean #genshin impact jean #diluc x reader #tombtales

[certifiedtrashmouth]

6 bitch

TRACK 6 - as it was by harry styles (eddie munson x fem!reader)

a/n: this could have gone very sad, but i wanted to write something softer. :-) just some shortness and sweetness.

“in this world, it’s just us. you know it’s not the same as it was.” 

Laying here with her, the entire world melted away. The street lights were nothing more than highlights in the shadows casting across the walls of the bedroom, the sound of a siren in the distinct merely white noise. None of it mattered to Eddie; the only thing that mattered was the feeling of her head on his chest and her warm fingertips dancing over his stomach in soothing circles beneath his shirt. All he wanted to care about was the sound of her deep breaths, timing perfectly with his own. 

He had spent the night out with friends. A loud dinner at a nicer restaurant, discussions of simpler times as they compared what their lives were now. How they had all moved away from their hometown, how they were all official adults now. Steve had just gotten a job as a school counselor, Nancy was running her own local newspaper, Dustin had just been accepted into his first choice college - they were all growing and changing, leaving behind the people they once were. 

Eddie found himself panicking halfway through the night, getting lost in his own head as he had listened to his friends indulge in the details of their new lives. He missed them, awfully. These days, they could only find one or two days a month if they were lucky to catch up this way, a stark change from the way they used to see each other every single day. Everyone was always busy. Everyone was always on the move. 

He had changed too. The moment he’d graduated and saved up, Eddie had moved to the bigger city. He was playing small gigs here and there as a solo-act, taking classes at a community college. It’s not like he had stayed the same, but on nights like tonight, it reminded him of just how much he had changed. And it was usually fine, manageable, but tonight had simply felt like a bit heavy of a reminder. 

But then he came home to her. 

She was something that had been a part of his change, too. In a chance encounter as he packed up one night after a show, she’d approached him. All shy smiles and fiddling hands as she complimented him on his performance. He doesn’t know what had gotten into him, but he found himself offering to buy her a drink, because she was a pretty girl, and she was talking to him. One drink turned to two, which turned to three. Stories were told, names were learned, and numbers were exchanged. The rest, as some would put it, was history. 

“What are you thinking about?” she murmurs against his shoulder, leaning her head back to get a good look at him. 

He looks down at her, enamored by the way the shadows dance across her cheek bones and how her eyes still shine with just as many stars in them as they did that first night. “Just thinkin’ about how things change.” 

“Good change, or bad change?” 

He thought about the last year with her. How she had gone above and beyond for his birthday, going so far as to even contact his Hawkins’ friends and bring them all into town for one night. That night, he’d gotten multiple ‘she’s a keeper’ talks. He thought about their first few dates, and how goddamn nervous he had been for the other shoe to drop. But it never did. She still came back for more, even after that date in which he’d accidentally locked them out of his van, and it inconveniently began to pour down rain. She still wanted to see him after he’d spilled his wine onto her during their first time eating at a nicer restaurant, making him curse and nearly cry before she took his hands in hers and promised him it was fine. The shirt could be replaced, but the moment couldn’t. 

“It’s a cute story for the grandkids, right?” 

When she said that, he saw a fear in her eyes. She was worried she was talking about the future too soon; it was only their third date. 

She wasn’t. He had decided he wanted to marry her by the second date. 

Everything about Eddie Munson’s life had evolved and changed from what it once was, and it was for the better, and it was thanks to her. For the first time in twenty-five years, he saw a future for himself, and he saw it with her. 

“Good change,” he promises with a whisper, reaching down to cradle her jaw before bringing his lips to hers chastely, “Such good change.” 

She hums against his lips, a small smile cracking. He rolls them over, caging her in with his arms as he hovers over her, drinking in her every feature. The way her hair spills out around her against the pillow, the way her face is so breathtaking even with sleep lines on her cheeks. 

“I love you,” he quietly confesses, the words still lighting her up like it was the first time he’d ever said them, “I love you so fucking much.”

“And I love you,” she says in return, bringing a gentle hand to his cheek that he nuzzles into without hesitation, only pulling away to press a kiss to her palm. 

He dips in for a proper kiss, his hair falling down like a curtain around them as their lips meet. 

Things were always changing, and always would be. But sometimes, it changes for the better. Sometimes, it changes so you can meet the right girl at just the right time, and maybe that wasn’t so bad.

Eddie Munson’s life may not be the same as it once was, but he wouldn’t trade it for the world.

#eddie munson fluff #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson #asks #thank u ily #this is definitely audrey lmao #spotify wrapped writing

[mrsalwayswrite]

Lady of the Loch (Jamie Fraser x OC) Part 2

Summary: An old family folktale thrived amongst the Frasers of Lallybroch about a mythical being that lived in the small, secluded loch near their home. Most claimed it was just a story, while a rare few claimed to have seen her. But for Jamie Fraser, she became so much more. 

Here's part 2! Hope you enjoy! Also moodboards are mine and all pics from Pinterest.

Words: 4800

Series warnings: canon divergence, all the Fraser family is alive, Claire doesn't exist, mild sexual content, magic themes, Greek mythology, pining, fluffy goodness

Here's Part 1 to catch up!

Jamie walked towards the loch, forcing himself to take each measured step instead of breaking out into a sprint like he wished to. 

It had been three long years since he was away. While he spent a portion at Castle Leoch, the majority was spent in France with his uncle there, furthering his education and learning the business trade. He was grateful to have been mentored but when the opportunity arose for him to return him, he jumped on it without remorse or a second thought. Lallybroch was where his heart remained and his family there. 

And only to himself would he admit the need to see her again. 

He had been back for a few days but this was the first time he had been able to sneak away from under his family's excited gaze. 

At twenty now, there was no question that he was a man grown. He stood taller than most men and while he may not be as wide and bulky as some Highlanders, he was by no means scrawny either. His skill with a sword and pistol had grown exponentially to where he was considered quite talented in both.

And while his body had matured into a strong, able-bodied man, it was his mind which had changed the most. He was more educated, more knowledgeable, yet with that, experience had taught him far more than books ever could. A stain upon his soul was never far from his thoughts. The men he had killed in combat had bled out what last naivety still lingered in his blood. The corruption he had seen. The abuse and torment people endured under the care of those supposed to take care of them. How easy it was for the strong to overpower the weak and steal from them. 

Jamie promised himself, he would never. Perhaps it was a romanticized view of himself, but he swore to defend those who needed it. 

Yet as he walked, growing closer and closer to the loch, to the place he had spent so much time, he could not help the worries and doubts that plagued him. It had been three years since they last said their farewells. Three years since she kissed his cheek. Three years since he promised to return soon. 

A promise which he had broken, even if it was no fault of his own. 

He approached the water, a stillness hung over the hidden place, that he could not recall before. It had always been his sanctuary, a place of peace. Now it felt like the calm before the storm. Carefully, he reached out and touched the water, stirring it with his fingers. 

"Jamie?"

His head whipped up….only for his jaw to drop and his heart to lurch out of his chest. 

For there she stood before him, her black hair cascading down her lithe body, those mesmerizing eyes staring at him. How beautiful she was, standing there with the faint sunlight trickling through the trees, how glorious and devastatingly perfect. Her beauty hit him anew. Had she always been so stunning? He thought in all the time he had been away, he could remember how gorgeous she was, but seeing her now, it was as if he had only remembered a hazy dream version of her and now the true, authentic person stood before him….his memory could not hold a candle to the dazzling creature she was. 

"Jamie? Is it truly you?"

He stood up, even while his legs felt a bit shaky. "Aye. I promised I'd return to ye."

In the next moment, her warm body slammed into his chest, knocking the breath out of him and almost knocking them to the ground. Yet his arms instinctively banded around her, drawing her closer to him, just as hers did the same. He found himself placing his lips against the top of her head, whispering reassurances to her in Gaelic. 

And with her in his arms, it felt like a missing piece was slotted back into place in his heart. 

"You returned."

"Aye, I promised ye, lass. Did ye doubt me?"

"No….I thought you had forgotten about me."

"Never." He growled. "I could ne'er forget aboot ye. I'd sooner forget my name and my clan than ever lose my memories of ye."

In response, her arms tightened around him and she buried her face against his chest. 

"I canna stay long. My Da will come looking for me. But tomorrow, I promise ye, tomorrow I'll return, aye? I'll stay wi' ye the whole night."

"Truly?"

"Aye." As he spoke, the plan formulated in his mind. "I'll sneak away once everyone is asleep, then I'll return before dawn. They'll no' ken."

He could sense the hesitation in her, unsure if the concern was for himself or for her. Boldly, he cupped her cheek, forcing her gaze to meet his. For a long moment, he was lost there, trapped in her eyes that were the most exotic and beguiling thing he had ever seen. Mentally shaking himself, he stroked her cheek with his thumb and almost lost it once again with the realization of how soft and smooth her skin was. The urge to touch her fair skin with his lips overwhelmed him. 

He cleared his throat before speaking, needing the distraction. "It'll be safe. Ye trust me?" 

"Yes."

That word undid him. To see the absolute trust in her eyes, with no form of guile or hesitation. To know she truly believed in him, even after all these years. 

Before he could overthink it, he gave into the desire, the siren's call. He placed his lips against her brow, lingering there. With that simple, reassurancing action, he wondered if he had made a mistake. For with the touch, his body rebelled at the idea of drawing away, of leaving her embrace, of removing himself from her touch, of separating from her moonlight skin and the intoxication that she was. He had heard and seen men driven to do unimaginable things, all for the love and need of drink, 'an addiction' as his educated mind supplanted. In the back of his mind, he wondered if this simple, chaste kiss to her brow would be his own. 

*****

Long after the sun disappeared beyond the horizon the next day, he returned. A blanket was rolled up under his arm, along with a half-full bottle of whiskey he had pilfered from his father's stash, and some bannocks left over from supper. 

To his surprise, the small loch was not as dark as he had come to expect. Under the moonlight, the water seemed to faintly glow, casting a cool light around the water's edge. 

Looking around, he did not spy her anywhere. "Lass?" He called out, frustrated he still did not know her name. 

With no response, concern slipped under his skin, but he tried to pay it no mind. She would come. She had to. Ears straining for any little sound of her, he tried to focus on setting up the blanket and offerings on the ground. In the back of his mind, he could not help but think how this could look like he was preparing for a picnic with the lass he was courting. The image crossed his mind before he could completely push it away or over-analyze it. 

"Jamie."

He spun around quickly, heat flooding his face at the thought of courting and picnics and then hearing his name. At the sight before him, the heat swiftly slithered down his face to coil tightly in his gut, answering the summoning of his cock which had abruptly awoken. 

Could he ever get used to her astounding beauty? Standing there in the moonlight, she glowed, even more so than the water around her ankles. The sweet smile directed straight at him, eyes alight with joy, made his stomach flip and his heart pound ceaselessly. Ah Dhia. She was radiant. 

Her smile further grew, an almost bashfulness to it, as she tucked her dark hair behind her ear. 

Realization slammed into him that he had been standing there gaping at her for an obscenely long time. He coughed, clearing his throat then rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassment replacing the prior heat that had settled in his belly. "Hello, sorry, ye just…" 

She laughed and Jamie swore his heart skipped a beat at the sound. 

"What is this?" She asked once she drew to his side, eyeing the blanket and offerings. The coy smile never left her face. 

"Ah," his cheeks warmed once again, embarrassment making him second guess his actions. Would he ever not embarrass himself around her? "I reckoned this would be better….um, more comfortable, ye ken? For listening to my stories. I didna mean–" 

But as he inelegantly rambled, she gracefully took a seat on the blanket, tucking her legs underneath her. "I have never reclined on a blanket before." She ran her hand over the coarse wool material, a forlorn thoughtfulness in her eyes. A look that made Jamie's heart clench and the desire to remove it overwhelming. 

"Weel, it's no' the best but it'll do the job."

"Tis perfect." She looked at him demurely. "Shall you share of your adventures now?"

And he did. 

They spent the next few hours talking while sharing the blanket along with the food and drink. Jamie told her everything he could remember about Castle Leoch- the stables he worked in and the horses there, about training with the sword under his Uncle Dougal's unwavering eye, about the castle grounds and the wee bit of mischief he caused there. He spoke more of France- of the boat trip there that made him terribly ill, about the books he studied, about his uncle Jared and his wine business, how Jamie helped out some and learned even more. He spoke of the friends he made and the people he disliked. He even confessed to sharing a few kisses with a lass in France, although both knew it would not lead to anything more. 

All the while, she listened ardently. Her gaze was locked on him, soaking in every word he spoke. A few times she asked questions and always laughed when he shared particularly humorous stories. Yet even as the moon rose higher, her attention never strayed from him. 

It was a heady sensation, to be the sole focus of this stunning woman. Jamie lapped up her attention, silently realizing the true extent of how much he missed her during his time away. She was more than just a friend, but also a confidante, someone he shared a special connection with. 

At the end of his tale, they laid on the blanket facing one another, the whiskey bottle empty and the food gone. Jamie was unable to tear his gaze away from her. During the later part of his story, their fingers had become entangled in the space between them. His other hand propped up his head, mirroring her, but his body was hyper aware of her touch, of his thumb rubbing along the kitten-soft skin on the inside of her wrist. His head buzzed and he was uncertain if it was due to the whiskey or her. Now with only the sounds of the forest around them, a tension built up between them, slowly growing thicker and thicker like a fog. In that tension was the desire to scoot closer and kiss her….and with the way she was looking back at him, he thought she may want him too. 

"You experienced quite an adventure." 

He hummed in response, his mind still absorbed in the idea of pressing his lips against hers and never needing to breathe anything other than her for the rest of his life. 

"What holds your future now?"

"I dinna ken." He huffed, shifting his gaze to the star-studded sky. "My uncle wishes for my return to France. My family wants more for me and I…" He trailed off as he scrubbed a hand over his face. A squeeze of their linked hands had him turning back to look at her. "I dinnae wish tae leave again."

"You shall know how to respond when Fate knocks on the door of your future."

"Did ye?"

"Fate chose for me." She whispered after a long pause. "And I find these past several years have not been as….lonely."

That quiet admission stroked his ego but also further fed his self-made commitment to not leave her alone. 

A sudden idea came to mind that caused him to smile brightly and jump up to his feet with all the grace of a hyper puppy. He stood at the end of the blanket, the smile never leaving his countenance even as she stared at him with a blend of confusion and hints of concern. Bending at the waist, he gave a courtly bow that sent her into giggles. Then he held out his hand towards her. "My lady, may I have this dance?"

A streak of shock shot across her upturned face. "I do not know how."

"I'll teach ye." He leaned forward a little and dropped his voice conspiracingly. "Dinna fash, it's only us. There's no one to judge."

"Well, my lord, how could I refuse?" 

She slipped her hand in his, letting him help guide her to her feet and off the blanket. With soft words of encouragement and placing her hands in the proper places, Jamie slowly led her in a court dance he had learned in France. The movements were slow but their bodies were close. That intoxication he experienced anytime he touched her hit him anew. His mind swung on a pendulum, on one hand trying to be the patient teacher and instruct her in the steps, while on the other hand he was struggling to not melt into a puddle at her feet. The joy radiating from her was overwhelming, her laughter and smile brighter than any star in the heavens. It warmed his heart that she found such delight in a simple dance with him yet broke his heart wondering how long she had been alone and desiring friendship. 

Soon enough she managed the easy steps and the two fell into a natural rhythm, their bodies seemingly knowing what to do without conscious thought. 

"I ken what ye are." He whispered suddenly as he stared into the cosmos of her eyes. 

During his regular studies, he had a tutor who used Greek mythology and readings in his class. He had only been paying minimal attention, for his mind was lost to numbers and logs for his uncle's wine business, when the tutor began to share a story of beautiful young women, minor goddesses of nature, who were usually tied to a specific location or deity. At this, Jamie found his attention riveted on his tutor. Then when the young man began asking specific questions of the mythical beings, more and more pieces began to fall into place in his mind. He spent the rest of the day claiming sick to his uncle and pacing the floor of his bedroom, wrestling with the new information. By the end of the day, he was weary but had come to the conclusion nothing had actually changed. He had always known she was something more, something ethereal. This only confirmed it. 

"What am I?" She asked, meeting his gaze unashamed. But behind it all, he could see the tendril of fear lying there, waiting to curl around her like a snake and squeeze the life from her. 

His feet planted to the ground, halting their dancing. Carefully, he raised a hand to caress her cheek, instinctively knowing it would comfort her as he answered. "A nymph."

A shudder overtook her, her hands shifting to grasp the front of his shirt as if to steady herself, before she seemed to gain control over herself again. Never removing her eyes from him, she leaned her cheek further into his palm. "Does that frighten you?"

"No…." He continued to hold her gaze, meeting those eyes that threatened to overtake him. "But I dinna ken yer name. Ye promised….before I left. Ye said ye would tell me when I returned to ye." 

The smile that grew on her face caused any and all artistic masterpieces to pale in comparison to her exquisite beauty. "Ianassa. My name is Ianassa."

He repeated it, the name dancing on his tongue like the finest of whiskeys, a sharp burn to gain his attention then warming him all throughout his body. 

In the next moment, he was uncertain who moved first or if they both felt the undeniable bond between them. For within the next heartbeat, their arms were wrapped around the other in an embrace while their lips came together with the gentleness of a feather and the fury of a thunderstorm. 

As his lips caressed hers, what memory he carried of any prior kisses burned away to ash. None could compare to the feel of her lips against his, of her mouth opening to his own and tongues stroking and dancing, of the wholeness having her in his arms, how it seared into the very marrow of his bones, how it felt perfect. The kiss was more than just a pressing of lips. No, it seemed that with the joining of their mouths, it opened his soul to her, for her to slide in and wrap around his heart like a creeping vine. For them to stake a claim on one another that none could ever deny. 

And as the kiss progressed, it turned from innocent to something distinctly hungry. 

He could not recall moving or guiding his feet along. All he could focus on was her. All his senses were attuned to were the breathy sounds she released into his mouth, of her hands clutching him like she needed him closer, of how thin her dress was and how it still felt like an impenetrable barrier. She had finally overwhelmed him, and he only craved more.  

Next thing he knew, he hovered over her as she laid on the blanket facing him. Her hands were tangled in his hair, refusing to let him distance himself further. One of his legs was nestled between her own. Yet it was those mesmerizing blue orbs that stole the breath from his lungs. Those eyes that drew him in effortlessly. They were the darkest shade of blue possible with the pupil blown wide. A flush hinted on her pale cheeks and her lips were plump and glistening. 

"I choose you, James Alexander Malcom MacKenzie Fraser." She spoke in a reverent hush, the words floating in the air to wrap around him like a warm blanket. "What is your wish?"

This time it was his turn to shudder at her words. For he knew what she was offering and the power she was giving him. But as he gazed down at her, there was no fear in her eyes, no restraint. All he could see was affection and trust directed at him…and he realized that was his undoing. More than her beauty or kindness. She looked at him as someone worthy of her.

"I want ye." He confessed as he left a trail of kisses along her alluring jawline. "I always have…and not for this night but ev'ry night. Always."

"Then I am yours."

With that burning whisper, any composure Jamie still possessed shattered into oblivion. 

His lips attacked hers in a frenzy, equally met with her own ardent passion. Their clothing was haphazardly ripped off or just pushed to the side as the need for contact possessed them. When they joined, a hiss of pure pleasure ripped from his throat even as molten heat swept through his body like a firestorm. Their union was quick and messy, both on the edge of ecstasy before they even realized it. But Jamie could swear he saw the stars and galaxies in her eyes, could feel the connection to the very land as they both jumped the cliff simultaneously. It was only the chanting of his name in his ear and her nails like little claws in his back that kept him tethered to her and their world. 

Blissfully spent yet more alive than he ever felt before, he rolled onto his back, eyes closed as his lungs fought to regain air. 

"Ah Dhia. Is it always like that?" 

At her chuckle, he realized he had accidently spoken his thoughts aloud. What potential embarrassment was dashed away when she rolled to her side, placing her arm on his chest as she gazed down at him. 

"I hope so."

"Aye, me too."

She brushed a wild curl away from his face before leaning forward and kissing him again. It felt sated and gentle, just an unhurried, soft pressing of mouths. A feeling he wanted to sink into and wallow in. 

He was unsure how long they lazily kissed and caressed for before she slowly pulled away. On instinct, he chased her mouth, not quite ready to lose that blissful connection. 

She giggled, pressing a single finger to his needy lips.  "Do you trust me?"

"Aye." He answered immediately, without a second thought. 

Her answering smile could outshine the sun. It dazzled him enough that he did not notice until she had stood up fully. Moving carefully, she walked the few steps to the edge of the water. With eyes locked on him, she pushed on the neckline of her dress, shimmying the white fabric off her shoulders to catch on her breasts. He stared transfixed as little by little her body was revealed, like a present slowly being unwrapped or a wedding veil reverently lifted to display the bride. This moment felt holy. Even nature itself hushed at the display of perfection. When they had coupled, Jamie had barely paid attention to her body - a clear oversight on his part. There had been an unnatural drive to connect with her, to bind, to become complete inside of her lithe body. He had caught glimpses of her creamy thighs and hips as he pushed her dress up before plunging into her wet heat. But this…

For when her dress lay at her ankles, soaking in the water, Jamie damn near swallowed his tongue. 

She had always had a glow about her, something that proved her otherness, but now, she appeared radiant, outshining even the moon above them. 

"Come." She said, holding her hand out to him. 

Once again unable to refuse, nor did he truly want to, he rose, undoing his belt and allowing his tartan to pool at his feet. He yanked his shirt over his head, dropping it at his feet. 

For a second, he wondered if he should feel some sort of shame, standing before her naked as the day he was born. Yet there was none. For there she stood in her natural splendor, without shame or attempts to cover her own nakedness. Thinking about what they had been doing only minutes ago ceased any embarrassing thoughts. If anything, he found himself yearning to touch her more. 

Silently, he stepped closer, taking her outstretched hand. With fingers intertwined, he followed her deeper into the water like she was his own North Star. With eyes locked on him, she walked backwards further into the water, further into her domain. 

Finally, she stopped as the water hit his knees. With a playful tug, she guided him to sit down. Curious and unashamedly aroused, he followed her guidance to sit on the ground. The water reached his ribs, almost tickling him as it swirled around him. Without preamble, she crawled onto his lap to straddle him. His hands clasped onto her hips, a groan almost escaping him at the sensation of her body above him and her soft skin against his.

Carding a hand through his hair, she whispered, "close your eyes, young one."

He narrowed his eyes momentarily at her before following her command, all the while grumbling under his breath about how he was 'no a wee bairn'. 

She giggled, placing a fleeting, torturous peck on his lips. "Open."

He opened his eyes, uncertain but trusting. What he saw made his jaw drop and eyes widened. The sight that greeted him was almost as astounding as her beauty. The water swirled and glowed even more, even the trees and bushes were a lit with a cool warmth that made them shine. The very air seemed to twinkle under the star-studded sky. The small, secluded loch he was used to appeared transformed. Somehow still the same yet more. It felt like magic danced in the air and what veil covered the place had been lifted. 

"What–" 

"Tis my home. Or as I see it."

He blinked owlishly, head whipping around to try and take it all in before returning to the true beauty of the loch. 

"Thank ya, Ianassa. Truly."

"No, thank you Jamie. For everything." 

This time he initiated the kiss. The slow press of his lips against hers. Tracing her lips with his tongue. Enticing her mouth and tongue to dance with his. In that moment, he drank from her mouth, he worshiped her like the goddess she was. Pouring out all his affection and adoration upon her like a poor devotee, hoping to earn the attention of his goddess. His hands trailed over her body, caressing, touching, coaxing, and he knew it would never be enough. He would never have enough of her. 

His tongue traced her collarbone, a liquid fire pouring into his veins at the sigh it elicited from her. 

"Do you trust me?" She whispered into his ear, tugging on his earlobe with her teeth. 

"Aye." He answered amongst a choked sound, hands squeezing her hips. Uncertain if it was in a warning or permission to continue. 

"Give into the water, allow it to consume you."

Before he could ask of her strange words, she guided him into herself, sheathing him fully in a fluid motion. A ragged groan fell from his mouth at the sensation. How could it feel even more exquisite, more perfect than before. Her lips landed on his, nipping and sucking, almost moving in tandem with her rocking hips. Amongst that, she leaned into him, guiding him backwards, the water rising higher and higher around him. Without fear, he leaned back, fully submitting himself to her. With her lips still attached to his, the water finally covered them. Instead of panic filling him, all he could feel was pleasure, pleasure, pleasure. 

And he wholeheartedly gave in. He did not fight it as the water filled his lungs and his body sank beneath the water. For her hands were upon him the whole time, lips and body never stopping their ministrations. Driving him deeper into the water that seemed endless and deeper into her, into a bliss that threatened to rip him apart. 

And within the blink of an eye, he suddenly understood what it meant to be consumed. 

*****

The next morning Jenny and Ian came down to the loch looking for Jamie. 

The family had found it odd he was not down from his room for breakfast. Then when Jenny was sent to check on Jamie and make sure he was not sick in bed, she discovered the bed empty and blankets unrumpled. Clearly no one had slept in that bed. Ian arrived to help Jamie out in the fields with Brian as agreed upon prior. Instead Ian headed towards the loch with Jenny offering to help look for her 'flea-brained' brother. Everyone knew how often Jamie spent time there. 

But instead of finding Jamie asleep like they expected, they discovered what looked like a picnic laid out on the shore. A spare blanket spread out with an empty bottle of whiskey and crumbs. Beside that, they found his clothing and boots in a haphazard pile. The most perplexing find was a white dress, caught on some rocks in the water's edge. 

Nowhere was there a sign of him nor the owner of the strange dress. 

Nor would they ever be found again. 

As the years passed and stories were told from one generation to the next, a new one arose. How sometimes the sound of laughter could be heard from the loch if you listened hard enough. The angelic sound of a woman and the deeper voice of a man. And it was said that if you were truly lucky, if you crept close to the loch on the night of a full moon, you might even catch a glimpse of a couple standing in the shallows of the loch dancing under the moonlight, the woman with hair dark as the night above and the man with hair like fire. 

But one part of the story never wavered as the years passed. How those that inhabited Lallybroch always claimed to have a protector that lived in the small loch nearby. 

#mzwrites #mz writes #mz edits #more outlander #outlanderedit #outlander fanfic #outlander fandom #outlander #jamie fraser x oc #jamie fraser #james alexander malcolm mackenzie fraser #jamie fraser smut #canon divergence

[acceleracers-baby]

Acceleracers HC’s! Core Memories! Metal Maniacs Edition!

Metal Maniacs

(Taro Kitano, Tork Maddox, Monkey McClurg, Porkchop Riggs & Mark Wylde)

————

Metal Maniacs

Taro Kitano - The Kitano family strongly follows Bushido. Bushido is the samurai code of ethics, and Taro has always taken the tenants very seriously. Even as a boy, he was always taught to act with those core values in mind. He was expected to serve his purpose with honor and benevolence. With that in mind, he found that when his family was gossiping about the other boys his age, they always pointed out how chatty they were. Those who were criticized the most were often the loudest of the group. That’s why Taro has trouble communicating. He associates expressing his boundaries and needs with being accused of lacking wisdom and humility. His stoic persona is his way of proving to himself that he is worthy, so when that inevitably ends up getting in the way of his relationships with the people he cares most about, he’s not sure how to react.

Tork Maddox - Tork’s core memory stems from that small scar he has just above his eyebrow. Before becoming the leader of the Metal Maniacs, he worked on cars and occasionally contract welding. Due to all the heavy lifting and long hours, he built up muscle fast. So when he gets burned during a freak welding accident, people begin to find him…intimidating. Tork’s a big guy, and between all the other cuts and bruises he gets working jobs, people, unfortunately, automatically assume the worst when they see him. It’s a HUGE hit to his confidence. He looks tough, but back then he didn’t have the same no nonsense attitude towards life. It takes about a week of Tork avoiding his friends, family, coworkers…and everyone else for his uncle to approach him about it. Tork confides that he doesn’t want people to be afraid of him, but his uncle suggests that maybe it’s not such a bad thing. Maybe that knee jerk reaction people have could weed out the ones who aren’t worth welding himself too. That’s where he gets “we’re welded” from.

Monkey McClurg - Monkey’s first engine is something he will never forget. He always liked puzzles growing up and an engine was just a bigger and better version of that. Every second at home was spent experimenting with different solutions for every problem that junkyard relic had to offer. It was genuinely in shambles when he had picked it up from the dump- but in his opinion, that was half the fun. It took a solid year for him to even be able to get it to run for more than five minutes before ripping itself apart. Every step forward always seemed to be followed by three steps back, but with every problem he ran into, he gained that much more knowledge on what worked and what didn’t. Truly, failure was his greatest teacher. He basically learned everything there is to know just from messing around in the town junkyard.

Porkchop Riggs - Sometimes core memories are grand events that change a person for the rest of their life. Other times it just something small somebody did for you when you were just big enough to remember. Porkchop’s core memory is just that. He wasn’t even big enough to see over the dash of his momma’s rig yet, but that didn’t stop him from being the best little helper he could possibly be. Between swapping out the music and handing her the ham radio when asked, he almost felt like a genuine trucker. Almost. For some reason, in his tiny child mind, you weren’t a real trucker until you blew the horn. The day he gets to was the end of a full week trip. They traveled from one end of the states to the other and it had taken them about 40 hours of driving time with stops along the way. He’d been so good the whole way there, Momma Chop let him blow the horn for as long as he wanted on a long strip of empty highway. It was glorious.

Mark Wylde - Like I mentioned in the Teku Edition of this series, I like to imagine that Kurt & Mark’s dad was the one to get them into racing. However, before they could drive, he wanted to get their hand eye coordination up to par via sports. Kurt chose baseball, and Mark, idolizing his big brother at the time, followed suit. At the time, they were too young to really start having a sibling rivalry yet, so both boys were just excited to be doing something together with their old man. The best part, however, were the shitty concession stand hot dogs they got after every game. They were always prepared on one of those gas station style roll cookers and the buns were usually just slightly stale, but that never mattered to Markie. Especially, as they grew up and a wedge started to form between them, no argument couldn’t be solved with a good old fashioned hot dog. It was like their form of a peace treaty. It’s the first thing Kurt offers him once they get back from the drone headquarters.

#acceleracers #hot wheels #hot wheels acceleracers #hot wheels highway 35 #acceleracers headcanons #hot wheels hcs #hot wheels fanfic #acceleracers fanfic #kurt wylde #mark wylde #metal maniacs #metal maniacs HC’s #taro kitano #tork maddox #monkey McClurg #porkchop Riggs #i’m so normal about them

[gildedmuse]

So, I just know all of Tumblr was wondering, "hey, you remember that really weird ZoLaw fan with the annoyingly overly stylized post? I wonder if she's seen this and if she has any theories or thoughts, an observation or two?"

Well, allow me to set your wandering mind at ease, fictional Tumblr fan. The answer is: No. No, I really don't.

I have like three hundred.

[I also spent time just trying to track down as many translations as possible. Is Tera A Criminal's Daughter or The Daughter Of Thieving Bandits! These are CLEARLY separate things and can ENTIRELY change how her utter nonpresence in Zoro's life shaped him! Though I can take comfort in knowing that, regardless of what kind of crimes her father was committing they were more important than anything his daughter ever did in her entire life.]

And, hey, as might as well jump right into that whole mess.

1. Wait, Zoro's mom is dead? Thank goodness, I was worried Oda forgot one!

(AKA: Stop. Murdering. Moms.)

I'll go first, I don't mind saying when I was wrong. True, in the past I may have suggested that the vast majority of female characters in One Piece come off as ever so slightly, "leaning into sexist tropes with unadulterated joy; it's the misogynistic tropes equivalent of a child running naked through a grocery store. It's right there, everyone sees it, yet people shut up and continue shopping in part because, well, these days you just expect most people to cover that junk! What would you even say? And if you DO speak up and call out the inappropriate, be prepared for blank stares and tantrums; but THEY don't mind! THEY don't think it's wrong! You're just being mean!"

More or less a direct quote.

However, I see now that I rushed to judgement and the reality of the situation is far more nuanced. With that in mind, I was just wondering if someone could help answer some of the questions I have.

Like: Why does Oda believe that it's illegal for (maternal) female characters to survive other character's backstories?

More importantly, why hasn't someone just reached out to explain the misconception!? It can't be that difficult. If nothing else, just have a lawyer or judge or other expert in censorship on hand. Or is the one of those cases where back in highschool his friends made something up and then kept pretending it was real to see if he'd believe you and not only did he fall for it, it took over 20 years before he learned that, what, no that's not illegal. That would be crazy if it were an actual law. Cause you know, after the first 10 years I think yeah you have to just lean into it. Pretend it's a creative decision on your part and definitely not because you were terrified of being sentenced to a slow and humiliating public death.

Just to be clear that's definitely what's up, right? I mean, I'm struggling to think of another reason....able excuse why a story that I really enjoy keeps playing the same old sexist tropes cards again and again to the point of absurdity. It would just help if I had a valid excus- explanation. I almost mistyped the word explanation.

....

....

So I imagine it went like.

"That's the third mangaka they've had to Publically Execute this week!"

"They've started taking this law way more serious lately."

"This one really deserved it though! I heard his main character has a mother in her late forties!"

"That does seem old to have your first child."

"No, he's the middle of three and 22 years old. The story even has flashbacks of defining moments in his childhood and never once did she try to sacrifice herself for him, get murdered by his enemies, or die in meaningless unrelated accidents."

"Damn, that's cold to be there for all the protagonist core moments and not die and help him develop and grow a character? They must have a very antagonistic relationship. Is she actually the villain."

"Not that we know, and when they asked about this being a possible plot twist since - obviously if she's evil no laws are being broken."

"Well, of course, that's the whole reason Statue 2-dash-57 exists; if creators can show they have consistently been building up to a surprise twist then the female character in question can continue to live so long as she continues to be unrepentant and unlikable until the resolution of her arch by the protagonist."

"That's the thing! Under oath not only did man present no evidence to support her identity as a secret villain, he went on the record stating he wanted to depict their relationship as one of a normal modern 20 year old and his mother."

"That can't be true! What publishing company would even print that!?"

"It gets worse. I told you he was a middle child? Well, according to those who've read the actual manga, his younger sister was really sick as a child."

"Oh, well, at least-"

"It was just a fish allergy. She's perfectly fine."

"Sometimes I feel this law is unnecessarily harsh but.... Then you hear stories like that, and you realize that some people really are monsters."

#So this was going to be one post three parts (because obviously) then I remembered even people who have purposefully followed me hate that #I took into consideration that not everyone wants a unmountable wall of Zoro meta analysis on their dash so now its gonna be 3 post style #keeping in mind I've already written it all up and will just be posting them one after the other so effectively the same result #only with the illusion of my empathetic nature #I do have a lot of thoughts on what amounts to a very small amount of scribbled lines and a couple doodles #he literally didn't even bother giving Kuina's mom or grandmothers a name like they didn't even have a identity #In fairness there wasn't a need for them to have any kind of identities or individuality or identifiable features #everyone knows only one trait really matters when it comes to adult females: they go down #into the ground....as a corpse. After ensuring that their death would be the best way to help their children grow. As characters. #I'm joking cuz its funny. It's obvious why Zoro's mom got a name & description: she gave birth to a protagonist and not a human sacrifice #But have considered why those specific qualities are what he chose to define her by - she's fictional he could have made up anything! #I'll have to talk about it in the other posts I'm wasting precious tag room #one piece #roronoa zoro #one piece meta #one piece sexism #this post is not for everyone; actually its pretty much just for me #conversations with fictional people #more opinions than anyone asked for about subjects they don't even care about #Oh! I found the blogs new subtitle! #author gets sassy then preachy then sassy again and then swerves sharply to the weird #oh these tags are way too much #Zoro's backstory #Zoro family history #amusing musings #why am i the way that i am #three post style: part one!

[rahmi-yilmaz]

alp navruz. thirty five. cis man. he/him. » there’s rahmi yilmaz who’s been living in ashford for one year. the resolute currently works as a publicist and they’re known for being confident but also cynical at times. rumor around town is that he was once a semi-famous singer but ended up quitting for an unknown reason. i overheard they approve of the changes happening in ashford because he was given a job as the town publicist. + emmy. 29. central european timezone. she/her. / @ashford-extra

( you guessed it. yet another fucking long intro from emmy )

TW: pregnancy, parental abandonment.

CHILDHOOD

rahmi's mother, emel, and father, aslan, were star-crossed lovers. emel came from a wealthy family, while aslan was not as well off. emel's parents forbade her from seeing rahmi's father. however, they secretly married and her family immediately cut her off and stopped speaking to her when they found out. rahmi therefore never met his mother's side of the family, but it didn't matter. he was born a year after they said their vows and they had at that point emigrated to california. they had taken aslan's parents with them, who were a great support system and helped a lot with rahmi growing up. he was a quiet boy, a bit introverted and he spent a lot of time falling in love with music, learning how to expertly play the piano, as well as spending time with his family and helping out around their shared home.

TEENS

as he reached his teens, rahmi begun coming out of his shell more. he signed up for theatre in both his middle school and high school and he was even cast in a local production of a couple of musicals. he wasn't popular by any means, but he went under the radar and was mostly left alone, by anyone outside the theatre and music club he was apart of. it was during his teens he begun writing songs, mainly love songs, mostly basing them on his parents who were still in love and thriving. a young rahmi dreamed of a love like theirs. he went off to college and studied music and music composition, getting excellent grades.

20s

in his senior year of college, rahmi met a woman, mariana, and their romance was a whirlwind one. they met, fell in love, moved in together and got married all within a single year. he believed he had found what his parents had. they graduated at the same time, and moved to los angeles. rahmi worked on his music, attempting to make it big by doing open mic nights and sending out demos, while his wife quickly soared as a fashion model and designer. he supported her and was proud of her every step of the way. after about three years in the city, rahmi got his big break. he was finally signed to a label. a year later, he'd begun creeping up on the charts and people begun recognizing him on the street. he had achieved his dream. when mariana announced that she was pregnant on his twenty eighth birthday, rahmi was over the moon. mariana, however, was not. she begun resenting her husband, claiming she'd lose her career due to this unplanned pregnancy changing her body. they had many talks and discussions, and in the end mariana made the decision to carry their child to term. but the moment their son, aydin luis yilmaz, was put in her arms she told rahmi she wanted a divorce and that she'd sign away her parental rights. rahmi took one look at his son, as knew he'd do anything to protect the little dude, agreeing to take full custody.

30s

rahmi ended his music career to take care of his son. he lost his contract with the label, but nothing mattered other than his aydin's wellbeing. the kid's mother had chosen not to love him, so rahmi made the choice to love him enough for the both of them. for years he received help from his parents and elderly grandparents, who were over the moon to have a baby in the family again. rahmi went back to school at thirty, studying public relations. he got his degree and begun working in the field. after proving his skills in hollywood, working with some celebrities who didn't have the best reputations, he was hired by the town of ashford and was even offered a small house to live in as he works on bettering the town's image. he realized the small town life might just be the right thing for him and aydin, which is why he accepted.

PERSONALITY

rahmi has grown cynical, especially when it comes to romance and love. he has realized what his parents have, is a one in a million thing and doesn't expect to find it for himself. as a person he's very confident and carries his head high, while splitting his time between his work and his son, not really taking time to go out all that often. he's only lived in town for a year, so he doesn't have a big network, but his parents fly out every so often, which the now seven year old boy loves.

HEADCANONS

since his son was born, he hasn't been on a single date but has rather spent all his time making sure he could create the best life for aydin as possible.

the small house that he was offered to live in, is just enough for him and and his son. rahmi spends most of his time in his home office or meeting up with town officials, while his son is thriving in his new school.

is apart of a single dad's club in ashford, which is basically the only social interaction he has. they go out for a beer or a walk every now and again, and have occasional play dates.

rahmi still writes music, but doesn't share it with many people. the only person who knows that he does, is his son and that's only because he himself has shown an interest in music.

#« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑖. › interactions. #« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑖𝑖. › musings. #« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑖𝑖𝑖. › visuals. #« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑖𝑣. › answered. #« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑣. › playlist. #« 𝑟. 𝑦𝑖𝑙𝑚𝑎𝑧 » ━━━ 𝑣𝑖. › aesthetic. #tag dump #ashford.intro

[bboisawesome]

I just finished the 10 episodes of Dragon’s Rising on Netflix, so I wanna talk about it.

Just to let y’all know, I enjoyed it. ^^ I’m gonna put a read more thing if y’all haven’t seen it yet and don’t want spoilers.

OKAY! So, I finally finished Crystalized and got into Dragon’s Rising. My quick review of Crystalized was…meh. It was okay, not the worst season, but not my fave. Also, I hate Harumi so anytime she is on screen I am filled with rage. But enough about that, I’m talking about Dragon’s Rising.

First, I want to address the whole, “I don’t know how that happened but it did thing.” Such as Arin teaching himself Spinjitzu, and there being two fire elementals. (Or she has heat? I guess? Idk) Usually if that happened in a show, and they were like, “I don’t know how it happened it just did.”, I would totally count it as lazy writing, and I still kind of do. But I feel it works a bit better in this instance, because we are in a completely new world in a way.

If they were to try that in the regular world of Ninjago, I would completely write it off as lazy and stupid writing. They’d have to find someway to make it work or else it would just be contradicting to past lore, and I know Ninjago hasn’t been the best at keeping lore consistent and stuff, but having two elemental masters wield the same element that aren’t related would be a pretty big lore piece to mess up.

I feel that can be more excused with the whole merge. It’s obvious the merge has changed how the realms work. Some rules seem to be non-existent now, ((such as the cloud kingdom)) and new rules have been created. It’s not just Ninjago anymore, it’s a new world and some of the things we know about Ninjago don’t exist anymore. That’s why I feel this works a lot better. Even if it’s still not totally explained, we still get something, and that is that the merge has changed things, we just don’t know everything it’s changed.

So with that out of the way, I want to talk about the new characters, world building, and all that good stuff.

I’m gonna start with characters. And a good place to start is our new main characters.

Arin, Sora and Lloyd. They seem to be the main three. We have Kai and Nya, and later Zane. But these three as main characters provide a nice dynamic, and I believe an interesting angle to introduce this new world to us.

First, I want to start with Lloyd. Lloyd is a familiar character, a sort of anchor for Ninjago fans that helps ease them into this changed setting. ((The other ninja can also attribute to this effect.)) We all know Lloyd, we know his story, we know who he is, what he does, etc. He is someone we know a lot about, who is also learning about this new world that the merge has created, and dealing with the parts of Ninjago that don’t exist anymore. But there’s a nice familiarity to it that I think let’s people know that some of the old Ninjago is still there. It’s just moving on into a different stage of life, in a way. Lloyd kind of does the same, as he becomes a teacher, or a master. He’s moving on to the role Wu once possessed. Ninjago has dabbled about Lloyd becoming the new Sensei in the past, but I always thought it’d be weird if he became the new Sensei to people that already know Spinjitzu, and have trained for years longer than him. Sure, Lloyd did assume the role of team leader, but he never really went up to the same role as Master Wu. Now he’s finally going through that step of his journey with Arin and Sora, and we get to see him figure it out along the way. We get to see him use what Sensei Wu taught him to teach the next generation of ninja, and help pass the mantle over. ((Also, love watching Lloyd be a little cringe fail while figuring out how to do that, love that for him. ^^))

Next, there’s Sora. I think she adds a nice contrast to Lloyd, as she is completely new. She’s not from Ninjago, she’s from Imperium. She’s spent years growing up with the events of the merge, and she’s taken that time to explore this new world as well. Then her new tech powers pulls her into the world of Ninjago, as well as her friend Arin. She’s a wonderful way to help introduce this new world that we know nothing about, and helps bring insight to the main antagonists as well. I am also loving how close she is to Arin, in a world where they became abandoned or alone, they found each other! If there’s one thing Ninjago provides well, it’s found family, so I’m glad to see that carry into Dragon’s Rising. ^^

Finally, there’s Arin. I believe Arin is a nice middle ground. Unlike Lloyd, Arin is a new face. He grew up around the crossroads, just like Sora, and helps introduce parts of this world we aren’t familiar with. But, unlike Sora, he does come from Ninjago, something familiar to us and to Lloyd. He knows a lot about the ninja, stuff that happened to Ninjago, and many other things. He’s a very nice mix between old and new, and I think that’s a perfect representation for the new world of Dragon’s Rising. Also, I think it’s adorable how much of a fan boy he is, and for being self taught he isn’t half bad. I think I agree with Lloyd when I say that with more training and guidance he will be very good at being a ninja.

I also think the world building is very cool! We get some of the old Ninjago stuff, the monastery, Cloud Kingdom, stuff like that. But we also get new places, and we get the interesting concept of how the different cultures and lifestyles of the realms would interact when smushed together. The crossroads is a nice representation of that, specifically the carnival! Having an event for all of the different realms to come together and celebrate parts of their worlds was amazing. Not to mention, it’s also an opportunity to mourn what was lost during the merge. The merge may have invented a new world that provides opportunities for some, like Sora, but it was also a huge event that tore people’s lives apart, like Arin. Everyone finding a way to come together and celebrate what they once had, while also celebrating the new things they have is a wonderful bit of world building for the crossroads. You get a good sense that this is a place where the different realms really do come together, not just physically, but spiritually, in a sense. They come together as a community, some as a family.

You also get the nice contrast of Imperium, a place so bent on keeping things how they are supposed to be. They’re stiff, brainwashed, and overall just plain dystopian. Even it’s own citizens are afraid to step even a bit out of line, and it could be for the simplest of things, such as not wearing shoulder pads on a Tuesday. It’s very stark contrast to the colorful and wild world of the crossroads. Everything looks nice and orderly in Imperium, but no one is free. Not to mention the whole harming living dragons for energy thing. And the leader just seems very narcissistic. It’s all about what she wants, she doesn’t care what’s actually best for the city or for her people.

Then you have some of the other places, such as the part of the realm of Madness, and the Cloud Kingdom. We get to see how these different areas that are more separate have been dealing with the merge. Overall, it’s nice to see all of this setting being expanded upon.

So, yeah, I enjoyed Dragon’s Rising. I’m excited for more. I might talk about Nya, Kai and Zane soon, but personally I don’t think I have much to say, so I’ll leave it out for now.

I also would talk about Ras, since he seems to be building up to something more interesting, but I wanna see where that goes first.

Also, Riyu is adorable.

Aaand, I think that’s everything? Everything I can remember or properly type out without being confusing anyway.

#dragon’s rising rant #dragon’s rising analysis #dragon’s rising #ninjago: dragons rising #ninjago lloyd #sora dragons rising #arin dragons rising #ninjago kai #ninjago nya #ninjago zane #riyu dragons rising #ras dragons rising #words about stuff #a really long unnecessary essay

[shirogane-oushirou]

HI RO <333 🌱🎵💗 how about those with ren hehe >:3c

HI NICK my friend nick!!! 😊✨💕i hope you're having a nice day today hehe~ thank you for sending these in particular -- that last one made me Confront The Stubborn, Long-Internalized Cringe, but it's nice to get it out and not feel so self conscious about it 🤗 constantly growing and evolving etc!!

🌱 Who was your first F/O?

if we're talking like "fictional crush that i sometimes imagined myself with when i was itty bitty"? speed racer aksjndkjn. remembering that a few months ago made me feel ANCIENT. but if we mean "purposefully creating an oc or self insert to ship with a character," either at.em or yami ba.kura from yu.gioh u___u technically i selfshipped with several yu.gioh characters, but one of those two was the first. first thing i learned to draw after getting my first "how to draw manga" book was kissing, SPECIFICALLY so i could make my oc stand-in(s) kiss them LMAO. and then i went FERAL when i found out about their early incarnations, WHEW. changed my brain chemistry. i developed So Many Preferences in future f/os thanks to them ;;;;;;;

🎵 List three songs that remind you of your selfship.

"Chasing Clouds" by Bad Computer & Danyka Nadeau "Nearly Witches (Ever Since We Met)" by P!ATD (same hat w you and rika kjsndkjn shaking your hand) "You Spent All Your Love" by Mega Mango

💗When did your F/O first say ‘I love you?’

for doc! and v! ren this gets into "i haven't killed all of my internalized cringe" territory but uh. never gonna kill the cringe until i voice it!!!!!!!! do or die!!!!!!! 💥💥💥 their version of my s/i is one that i've had for ~17 years??? who's like a verse hopper (created for gur.ren lag.ann and oc shipping back in the 00's. WHEW...). i've known him for like... 8-10 months, dated for 6 or 7. due to verse hopping mechanics, i'm thrown out of his verse -- we knew it'd happen, we just weren't sure when -- and he wasn't able to work up the nerve to confess beforehand, despite keeping a ring in his pocket for months. it isn't until i find my way back after A Not Insignificant Amount Of Time (from his end; for me it was a day-ish) that he finally gets the words out, because he doesn't want to let things slip through his fingers again. r!ren does it MUCH faster KJNSAKFJN. it's maybe a few months into dating? autistic rizz strikes and i'm the first to let slip that i love him after a little Private Time, because i want to make sure i understand what our relationship is, and he IMMEDIATELY tells me he loves me back and wants to spend the rest of the day being gross and snuggly and cuddly and romantic and kissing my neck like a little weirdo 🙄🙄🙄<- loves it. idk, writing it out like this, my and r!ren's vibe is so Normal People Normally Dating In A Normal Way compared to any of my other ships lmao ;;;;

(ask game)

#ljsndkjfnk posting it!! getting it out!! not gonna let it continue to rot in my brain and make me feel like i can't talk about later bits #of doc! and v!ren plot!!! ARGH!!! #it also plays a part in my gray and raven verses... as well as most of my oc plots so. gotta get it out at some point!!! #📌 [ my posts. ] #[ asks. ] #[ oomfies ; nick. ] #🍄 [ lying on the blade of an emotion. ] #🦦 [ can't escape it. ] #🧃 [ who is in control. ] #🐐 [ been up all night. ] #✨ [ oc lore. ]

[catre33]

My favourite books in my personal library: (in completely random order)

The Little Prince by Antione de Saint Exupery. 111pg

'The little prince lived alone on a tiny planet no larger than a house. He owned three volcanoes, two active and one extinct. He also owned a flower, unlike any flower in all the galaxy, of great beauty and of inordinate pride. It was this pride that ruined the serenity of the little prince's world and started him on the interplanetary travels that brought him to earth, where he learned, finally, from a fox, the secret of what is really important in life.'

OH, my heart-. This absolute journey of a story is impossibly dear to me. I always pull it out when I need a reminder to grow old, but never grow up; and how stupid grown-ups can be. I've read this at least 7 times and watched the corresponding movie at least 5 times. It puts such a thrilling perspective on things I have had to fight with myself whether it should go in the fantasy or philosophy section. Sometimes we all need to remember how simple the world really is.

High Maintenance by Jennifer Belle 351pg

'Liv Kellerman has just left her cheating husband and--more tragically--their fabulous duplex with its Empire State Building views. Now Liv--alone for the first time in her life with few marketable skills, and crammed into a crumbling "fixer-upper" in Greenwich Village--is contemplating her next move...'

This book is HILARIOUS. I read it during my first and only trip to The Big Apple and finished it in the hotel room on the 2nd day (if I remember correctly). High Maintenance made the trip so much more thoughtful, and the people-watching much more interesting. People-watching in New York is already AMAZING, but I was able to better imagine the story behind the dude doing pull-ups on the street lamp (no joke). And it honestly made me think more than it made me laugh.S

tonewords, A Ghost Story by Pam Conrad 130pg

'The first time Zoe met Zoe Louise, Zoe was four years old. Zoe Louise was more than one hundred. From that day on--living in the same house, separated by a staircase and a century--Zoe and Zoe Louise have been an important and permanent part of each other's lives. Now Zoe is older. And although Zoe Louise never grows up, she is changing in dreadful, frightening ways. Time is running out for Zoe's best friend--and Zoe is the only one who can help her. To do so, she must travel back one hundred years in time and somehow alter the past. But in changing the past, must she also change the present? If she saves her friend's life, will she lose Zoe Louise forever?'

Stonewords is an annual fixture in my life. Though it doesn't in my book classify as a thriller it's still a ghost story and my favorite thing to read late on Halloween night. It's also one of the only books that use theoretical time travel that I will tolerate (mainly because it doesn't try to explain it away but rolls with the ideas). The character development is refreshing, as it is not in the ways you would originally expect.

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown 489pg

'An ingenious code hidden in the works of Leonardo da Vinci. A desperate race through the cathedrals and castles of Europe. An astonishing truth concealed for centuries...unveiled at last.'

This book is an absolute constant stream of 'I should have seen that coming!!!' I mean, are you kidding me?! Twists and turns left and right, never quite knowing where you are for a couple of paragraphs, and riddles hidden in the page headers! And an absolute wonder as a mythology lover having grown up in a Mormon household. The recognition of pagan beliefs and traditions that have become such essential parts of Christian culture is incredible. The Da Vinci Code rivals Good Omens as my favourite book of all time.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King 323pg

'Is it okay to hate a dead kid? Even if I loved him once? Even if he was my best friend? Is it okay to hate him for being dead? Vera's spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she's kept a lot of his secrets. Even after he betrayed her. Even after he ruined everything. So when Charlie dies in dark circumstances, Vera knows a lot more than anyone--the kids at school, his family, even the police. But will she emerge to clear his name? Does she even want to?'

This was a surprisingly recent read; and though it took a little bit to get into it, I was entranced. It was really just an erratic puzzle coming together much slower than I would have liked it to, and it was terribly easy to relate to Vera's desire to please be ignored. I have to be honest; I grew as a person, reading this book. You get to know the dead kid more than you think you would. It is altogether nowhere near what I expected, and more than I thought I'd ever need.

Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell 579pg

'Leaving behind her private forensic pathology practice in Charleston, South Carolina, Kay Scarpetta takes an assignment in New York City, where an injured patient in Bellevue Hospital's psychiatric prison ward has specifically asked for her. While Scarpetta examines him, she listens to one of the most bizarre stories she has ever heard. Oscar Bane says his injuries were sustained in the course of a murder...that he did not commit...' (the blurb is paraphrased as it is the longest blurb in history sorry)

Not only is this book written by one of my favourite milfs, but there is also a very homo romantic subplot that I could not get enough of!!! (pg354 AAAH!!!) Scarpetta and everyone around her had me hooked from the first words (which were 'Brain tissue'). There is nothing I could do while reading this but live the plot. The incredibly emotive writing dragged me along for a rough but worthwhile ride.

Frogkisser! by Garth Nix 372pg

'Poor Princess Anya. Forced to live with her evil stepmother's new husband, her evil stepstepfather. Plagued with an unfortunate ability to break curses with a magic-assisted kiss. And forced to go on the run when her stepstepfather decides to make the kingdom entirely his own. Aided by a loyal talking dog, a boy thief trapped in the body of a newt, and some extraordinarily mischievous wizards, Anya sets off on a Quest that, if she plays it right, will ultimately free her land--and teach her a thing or two about the use of power, the effectiveness of a well-placed pucker, and the finding of friends in places both high and low.'

I bought this book from an elementary school book fair when I was maybe 10 years old, and it must be one of my most 'loved' paperbacks with all it's been through. It has been in the hands of family and friends and calls me out in ways I will never admit. Frogkisser! is a beautiful story with the perfect doses of snarky and silly weaved throughout every character. I used to know the plot so well that I would open to a page at random and read it just to cheer myself up. Now it's a nostalgic symbol of my childhood; not just of the good parts, but a basis of the good parts.

Skellig by David Almond 182pg

'Michael was looking forward to moving into a new house. It was all going to be wonderful. But now his baby sister's ill, his parents are frantic, and Dr. Death has come to call. Michael feels helpless. Then one day he steps into the crumbling garage. What is this thing beneath the spiderwebs and dead flies? A human being, or a strange kind of beast never seen before? The only person Michael can confide in is his new friend Mina. Together they carry the creature out into the light, and Michael's world changes forever.'

This was also a very recent read and oh my goodness gracious aGnES NUTTER, WITCH! I didn't know what to do with myself after it. I... I can't even explain it. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience, to read this book for the first time. I was helpless in dreaming of angels and owls and clay and death and life and everything in between. I could never possibly do Skellig justice, so I'll leave it at this. Read it, and you'll know what I mean.

Notes: Good Omens is not listed here as it lives in my schoolbag, not my personal library. Coincidentally, all books listed were paperbacks LMAO

#books and reading #books #books & libraries #books and libraries #books and literature #booksbooksbooks #dark academia books #reading #booklr #book tumblr #long reads #currently reading #booktok #readers #bookblr #new books #read in 2023 #book review #booklover #book blog #bookish #book aesthetic #bookworm #bookstagram #book recommendations #book reading #book reccs #reading recommendations #reading reccs #reading recap

[disorganizedkitten]

These Hopeless, Helpless, Miraculous-Wielding Romantics Chapter 5

Miraculous Ladybug | 2018 | 2,448 | Ao3 | Masterlist | Prev | Next

The press conference was being broadcasted on every news channel in Paris, so of course Master Fu had it playing in his office while he and Caline had a small meetup.

“Your pupils are fast learners,” Fu noted. Chloe was standing near the podium with the other ‘speakers’, her head held high and emotionless.

“She’s learned as much from you as from me,” Caline replied. “Teaching her to make friends was a good call. So was the comb.”

“I must admit, I’m confused. I don’t deal in jewelry.”

“Of course not. That would be Marinette’s job nowadays, correct?” Caline took a sip of her tea and smiled at her co-conspirator.

“It may be.”

“Oh look! Mylene and Ivan are there too! In the crowd over to the left. It’s so good to see them supporting her.”

“I believe many of your class is in attendance.”

“I believe they all are. But then, you’d be able to tell better than I, no?”

“One should not lay all their cards face up before they are needed to play.”

Caline shook her head. Fu always did speak in riddles and proverbs. At least some people could understand most of them. “I suppose that’s true. Just as one shouldn’t proclaim that they have a secret until they’re ready to share it.”

Fu nodded at her as well. A teacher is only truly a teacher when the pupil can teach another.

Chloe was at the microphone now, and talking about her revised version of Andre Bourgeois’ garbage plans. Good thing too. Fu had been among those who thought Andre’s had been a horrible one. There was a high chance of it seriously backfiring another three times just in the next week.

As the speech went on, Fu noted at least seven places where something sounded distinctly ‘Marinette’ or ‘Pollen’ or, though this was only once, a place that seemed to yell police force insider. Chloe had put some thought and humility into this, if she asked for help. The Queen was growing with her hive.

“Thank you.” Chloe stepped down from the podium and rejoined Ladybug, Chat Noir and the redhead she kept around her.

“I doubt her mother will be too happy with her,” Fu said.

“Audrey? She might be livid.”

“What are you doing for the second half of the school day?”

“I’m not sure yet. It’ll probably be a debate on the topics they just discussed.” Caline gestured to the TV. “I really do think she’s on the right track now.”

“A flower cannot bloom in darkness, but once given sunlight it will sprout unrivaled.”

Caline nodded. “I should start back. Even with Chloe having her father let the class out for an extra half hour, some of the students might be there at the normal time.”

Fu stood and helped her clean up the small setup before he and Wayzz saw her off.

“It was nice seeing you again M. Wang.” Caline inclined her head at the door.

“Same to you Mme. Bustier.”

“It’s always good for you to visit,” Wayzz assured her, nodding from a semi-hidden perch on  Master Fu’s shoulder.

*****

Alya stayed behind as the rest of the crowd left. Instead of doing something at home, like editing a Ladyblog video or hanging out with Nino, she had decided to attend in person and keep her mind off of the whole Chloe/Queen B and Marinette/Ladybug mess.

It didn’t work. Instead, Alya had spent the entire time hyper-analysing everything.

There was a definite change of attitude for a little while after the first time Queen B was seen in battle, then once she and Queenie got their Miraculous long term Chloe started being marginally nicer, mostly just not attacking anyone else. Then last month was when she and Marinette started talking in a less bratty and more civil/friendish way, and Chloe started actively making up with people.

There was a pattern. There was a pattern and it took Alya three days to see it and ugh! This was worse than when she had to guess about Marinette’s stutter at the start of the school year!

Speaking of which, Marinette had gained control of her tongue in the last week. That just added to the weirdness!

Alya needed to spend a good four hours ranting to Trixx or Marinette and trying to sort her thoughts outloud.

Oh why couldn’t she just tell Nino about this? He was such a good listener and her boyfriend. Secret Identity rules stink.

“Staying for a personal blog interview Alya?” She was snapped out of her thoughts by Sabrina’s question.

“What? Oh! Um, actually, I just wanted to tell Chloe good job.” Alya expected the blonde to say something prideful from the side, but Chloe was nowhere in sight. “Where’d she go?”

“She’s with her Mother,” Sabrina’s tone said nothing, but her eyes betrayed her worry for a mere second.

“Did Mme. Bourgeois know what Chloe was planning?”

Sabrina didn’t meet her eyes, but Alya understood, if only slightly.

“I’ll set up something for her. Just make sure she gets back to school, okay?”

Sabrina nodded, looking up slightly. “Of course.”

“Thank you Sabrina. Chloe- Chloe’s lucky to have a best friend like you.”

“I try.”

Alya waved and turned. Chat Noir and Ladybug were on a nearby roof, probably getting in another couple minutes of teasing before they had to leave. Alya was glad they were enjoying each other’s company. Even if it wasn’t a romantic hangout. Because Marinette liked Adrien, and was getting super close to being able to ask him out. So LadyNoir was one sided.

Alya sighed at her sunken ship, then pulled out her phone to start a group text. Marinette would see it soon, and being Marinette, she’d rush to help.

Alya Césaire:

GUYS

EMERGENCY SUPPORT PARTY

NOW

No one replied to her right away, so Alya started walking home. She’d probably have to pick some stuff up from home anyways, and it’d be nice to get started on the various blog updates she was planning to write concerning the press conference.

It wasn’t until she was on her street that she noticed her phone had dinged with a reply. Two actually.

Rose: What happened?

Nino: Is it Adrien?

Alya: No. Chloe and Aubrey.

Ivan: This is about what just happened, isn’t it?

Alya: Yep. Remember Malidikator?

Nino: Mostly.

Rose: Partially.

Mylène: It’s hard to forget. What does that have to do with this?

Alya: Mme. Bourgeois is a big fan of using power to get your way, and who cares if it hurts anyone else. Chloe’s whole thing today was going against that idea.

Mylène: You don’t think Mme. Bourgeois is going to get mad at her, do you? Her suggestions today were actually good!

Alya: Ikr! She’s actually trying to do something good for the rest of us!

Which is why I started this chat. I want to surprise her at school, and let her know we’re happy she’s changing and watching out for us and the rest of Paris.

Ivan: She’s been being less mean to us this month overall, and she seemed to enjoy going out with us a couple days ago. I still don’t trust her completely, but I’ll help keep her from getting Akumatized a third time if I can.

******

“I should probably get going Chat. But I know the Guardian can contact me if you want to send a message through him while we figure our own way to do so, plus we still need to set up that picnic, so I promise I’ll see you soon.”

“Of course Bugaboo. Thank you for putting this much thought into a way to communicate for me.”

“Of course Chat! You’re my partner.” Ladybug smiled at him, wishing they could stay and talk for awhile. But she did have to go to school, and congratulate Chloe, and talk to Alya, and check in with her parents, and feed Tikki, and talk to her classmates, and work on her reading for class, and- yeah she had to be a civilian today too. “I’ve always got your back.”

Ladybug waved and threw out her yo-yo before they started another conversation.

Marinette landed on her bed, smiling. She was beyond saving now, wasn’t she? How did she even fall in love with that cat? Boundaries obviously breached.

 She didn't regret it. He was supportive, respectful, admittedly a little funny, trustworthy- the list could go on. She had every reason to.

She did feel a little bad for Adrien now though. What if he fell in love with her now that she didn’t return his feelings? It’d be worse than the Glaciator incident!

Little kids were lucky. They didn’t have to worry about relationships. Or, actually, they didn’t have to worry about romantic relationships. Friendships were still relationships.

Speaking of friendships, her phone was blowing up. Marinette picked it up and clicked the screen on, wondering what had everyone so excited.

“Tikki come look at this! Oh my gosh! It’s working!”

Tikki peeked at the screen and giggled. “Of course it is Marinette! They just needed someone to show them the way!”

Marinette squealed and started typing.

Marinette: I’m in! It’s so good to see so many of you giving her the benefit of the doubt, if not a full second chance. Thank you.

Alya: Alright! Any volunteers or should we just hand out jobs?

Marinette: Snacks.

Mylène: I have leftover sign supplies, I might be able to make one for her?

Alix: I can swing by and help Mylène.

Alya: That sounds great girls! Nino? Ivan? Rose? Juleka? Adrien? Kim? Max? Have you three even seen this yet?

Nino: No preference. Chloe hates half the stuff I do anyways.

Kim: Can I just show up and say good job?

Rose: Juleka and I could help with decorations!

Alya: That sounds great! Nino, can you set up a background music type thing? We can pick Music when we’re there, right?

Nino: Yeah. Actually, if I could get to it, I might be able to even play the mix from her one party!

Adrien: Can we ask Sabrina for help? She should be able to access it.

Alya: Hold a minute, I’ll ask.

Marinette scrambled down her ladder and out of her bedroom while she waited for an answer. She needed to set up with her Parents what she was bringing, and then she needed to get the gift she’d been planning to give Chloe this afternoon anyways ready. And make sure Aubrey hadn’t undone everything they’d been working on for the past month.

“Maybe we were wrong Mom! Power can be used for good! It can be used to help other people! That’s what I’m doing now! I’m done being alienated because I act like I’m better! I’m tired of being hated because I horde what I have while shoving it in their faces! I’m don’t want to be left out because I take over! It’s okay to let someone else lead once in a while. It’s a good thing to think of someone else instead of yourself!”

Chloe turned and ran before her Mother could say anything. She shouldn’t have blown up, but she was a hero now. She’d listened to enough lectures about power and responsibility to know she had needed to change. She had been trying . Chloe had been trying harder than she’d tried for anything else in her life, except maybe gaining her Mother’s approval.

But for Aubrey to denounce her attempts like that…

Chloe had known she wouldn’t be happy. But she hadn’t expected her to angry. Chloe was trying to bring actual respect to their name. Not the fearful submission they had given her before.

“Chloe?”

“What?” Her voice cracked when she snapped at her Kwami, but she ignored it and swallowed her tears.

“You did well. Just because she can’t see that, doesn’t make it not true. You’re a Queen now, and you’re only living up to your title. A Queen watches out for her subjects.” Pollen nuzzled her cheek gently.

Chloe didn’t reply, but she did scoop her up and carry her to her closet. She pulled out a small box Marinette had given her alongside the Miraculous and handed it to the Kwami.

Pollen squealed and hugged Chloe’s fingers before diving in. Hey, they both liked to look good.

******

“I promise, I’m feeling fine Sabrina. I dealt with it, and I think I was successful. Thank you for worrying about me though.”

“If you’re sure. I guess we should get to class then, right?”

Chloe smiled at Sabrina and nodded. Her best friend had been acting a little weird, but maybe that was just because Chloe herself had been a little off. Not that the rest of the class would notice.

“SURPRISE!”

Chloe shrieked, jumping backwards into Sabrina.

“Crap, are you okay, Chlo?”

“What the honeycomb is this?” Chloe asked, taking in the scene in front of her. Adrien was smiling at her, Marinette was leaning over her desk, looking slightly concerned, Alya looked torn between laughing and, something, Nino was staring at her over a setup on his desk. The rest of the class was there too. Ivan, Mylene and Rose were smiling at her. Alix hadn’t said anything scathing. Nathanael was looking at her. Kim was fiddling with something on his desk. Max was on the stairs, but had turned to greet her too. Even Juleka was smiling slightly. There was a pile of packages on her desk too.

“A support party,” Alya finally said.

“We want you to know that we’re behind you, all the way!”

“You were brave today, and put someone else’s needs above your own.”

“You don’t do that often, and the lack of support when you do is horrible.”

“But we’re here!”

“And we’re willing to be friends if you are.”

“You really impressed everyone today Chloe,” Marinette finished gently.

Chloe’s throat closed up. This- This was what she had meant, wasn’t it? This was what she had wanted. People to believe in her. Not the new, Queen B her, with a mask making her seem flawless, but Chloe Bourgeois, the her who had messed up more times than she could ever make right, but had decided to try.

She yanked Adrien and Sabrina into a hug, as they were closest. A moment later, she realized that more people were piling onto the hug. She wasn’t sure who was where, but they were there.

When Caline Bustier returned from delivering something to Mme. Melediev at the last minute, she was pleasantly surprised to see her class huddled together in the entryway, in what was clearly a group hug.

#In the time since I wrote this I've learned french #oh boy I don't even want to look #fear #Hiatus era fic #jaymeow writes #chloe bourgeois #marinette dupain cheng #marinette dupain-cheng #adrien agreste #ladynoir july 2018 #alya cesaire #ew romance #crossposting spam #THHMR