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whatifyoulivelikethat · 3 years

Text

curtain call, m | myg

pairing(s): yoongi x reader

summary: You know that TikTok trend where girls would drop their towels in front of their gamer boyfriends? As expected, Min Yoongi didn’t until he was informed by his six troublemaking friends. In this case, his girlfriend was the pro streamer and he was the guy in the towel... so what’s the result?

warnings: rated M (18+) for language, tiny bit of crack; sexually explicit thoughts; smut (fem reader, handjob, cowgirl); very fluffy; non-idol!AU - established relationship, music producer!Yoongi x LoL streamer!reader

“Hahaha, oh my god, chat, did you see that? He bounced so many times from the CC, he literally went sky, holy shit!”

Min Yoongi opened the front door of his apartment to the jovial, laughing voice of his girlfriend. He shut the door, smiling to himself. Her streaming room was in the extra bedroom. The door was open, and he could see the bright RGB lights of her computer tower reflecting off the walls. He took off his black coat, placing it on the hanger in the hall closet.

“Stop cursing because it’s not ladylike?” He heard her scoff. “No, fuck you.”

Yoongi smirked. That’s my girl.

He pulled out his phone from his pocket, scrolling through social media. His friends always told him to reply to their posts, but Yoongi was a lurker. The only reason he even had any social media was because his friends set it up for him. He literally only followed six people – his six friends. Everyone else he just stalked from memory, even his own girlfriend. Mostly because he didn’t want random people following him for no reason, because they most certainly would with how popular she was.

When she had asked him what he thought of her full-time video game streaming, Yoongi told her to go for it. She had been obsessed with League of Legends for over nine years, even before she met him. At their first date, she first question was if he knew what League of Legends was.

“Uh… I got to Gold in season 2?”

Later, she told him his answer had seriously tilted her and she even considered not going on a second date.

“But you did. Because of this face.”

She had laughed and nodded.

She had been playing solo queue for a long time. When she finally started streaming her games, her channel grew slowly. She would immediately start playing after she got home from work. Hours and hours, growing a fanbase. Yoongi later learned she was startlingly good – “I was Master for a long time, got Grandmaster this season” – and when she asked him if she could quit her job, he pointed to her bank statements.

“Do you even need to ask? You might make more than me at one point and I’m Big Hit’s top music producer.”

And she did end up making more than him, at least some months, because the team that picked her up as a content creator this year was none other than T1, the most beloved (and hated) organization in Korea. Had she ever met Faker? No, but it was cool to say she was under the same umbrella as him.

Yoongi rounded the corner, knocking his knuckles on the doorframe.

“Hey.”

You looked up from your game, grinning. Twitch chat had just said some dumb shit, but your eyes were on Min Yoongi now. The love of your life, standing in the doorframe, looking amused at your antics and dressed sharply in a white dress shirt and black slacks with a matching black tie. Very different to your black T1 hoodie and sweats.

“Whoa, fancy, fancy,” you teased, eyes going back to the game. You pushed back one of your headset’s earcups to hear him better. You clicked rapidly, autoattacking the towers swiftly. You were about to win after a hectic Baron fight. “Why are you dressed like that, Yoongi?”

Your chat was exploding with cat emojis. They had only seen Yoongi a few times and someone had compared him to a cat once. It stuck and now every time Yoongi spoke, your chat was spammed with cats. You even had a custom white cat emote made with Yoongi’s signature black hair.

Yoongi appeared next to you on the cam, only his slacks and bottom of his shirt visible next to you. He patted your head.

“Meeting today,” he said simply in his lovely deep voice. The chat was exploding due to Yoongi’s appearance. Everyone was thirsty for him. You couldn’t blame them. You too. “Looks like T1 Curtain Call is kicking ass.”

You fired the last shot at the Nexus, earning fifty gold. Was it necessary since that was the end of the game? Absolutely not, but it gave you bragging rights. You sat back, smirking. You were in your promos to Challenger, the highest rank in the ladder. It would be really exciting if you could make it to Challenger this season.

You turned to Yoongi as you honored your support Nami. “Chat wants you to say hi.”

Yoongi stuck his large hand out in front of the camera and waved it once. “Hey everyone.”

You chuckled as Yoongi retreated his hand. You clicked on the stats for the chat to read before reentering the lobby. T1 Curtain Call. That was your in-game name, or IGN. It was named after your favorite champion, Jhin, the Virtuoso, mercenary gunman with a sniper ultimate and an obsession with the number four. Your IGN was Jhin’s ultimate ability name. You were an attack-damage carry main, also known as ADC.

You felt Yoongi ruffle your hair, messing it up under your headset.

“Going to take a shower before making dinner. Bye, chat.”

Yoongi stuck his hand in the screen again, right in front of your face.

You leaned forward to read the chat as you queued up. It was going to be a long queue, so you answered questions in the meantime.

“Ask Yoongi to play with you?” You chuckled. “Trust me guys, I’ve tried, even if it was just normals. He’s confused as shit.”

Yoongi worked the shampoo in his hair, feeling the hot water hit his back. Before getting into the shower, Yoongi had gotten multiple texts from the group chat. Normally he would ignore them, because he always ignored the group chat. This time, however, he saw his girlfriend’s name pop up in the texts, along with his name with multiple exclamation points. He frowned at it, opening the chat. He did not like his friends typing her name heedlessly.

It was some dumb TikTok trend.

“Hyung, you gotta do this to noona,” Jeon Jungkook had typed with multiple ‘kekekeke’ behind it. The youngest was an idiot for even suggesting this.

“Please do it,” Kim Taehyung typed with multiple laughing emojis.

“I want to know her reaction,” Park Jimin typed with a bunch of winking faces.

“The fuck is this?” Kim Seokjin had typed. “Oh my god, you have to do it, Yoongi.”

“But don’t film it,” Kim Namjoon warned. “Don’t want to make her look bad or anything.”

Jung Hoseok had just typed multiple laughing symbols. Yoongi could hear him laughing through the phone even if he wasn’t here.

It was a stupid trend where girls wrapped themselves in towels after a shower and then dropped said towels in front of their gamer boyfriends while they were playing, with varying reactions. Yoongi had sighed, putting his phone down. He shouldn’t have clicked on the chat. Those guys were loons. Besides, his role was reversed in his situation. A guy’s flaccid dick was a thousand times less interesting than his girlfriend’s perky tits and round ass. And her squeezable thighs. And her glistening pussy.

Yoongi rinsed his hair off, muttering to himself.

Why would he even consider distracting her like that anyway? He rubbed soap on his arms and legs. She took her games seriously and Yoongi wanted her to win them. It would just be dumb to be the reason that she dies in game. It was her job, after all. It was true they had less sex, but that was also partially his fault. He had been working on an album and it ran long hours. He had to finish before the deadline after all. Yes, sometimes Yoongi woke up late at night with a massive hard-on and her warm body next to him, only in her underwear. Sometimes he took her hand and wrapped it around him, considering on waking her up to do it.

But her peaceful, sleepy face was too cute to wake up, so he never did.

Yoongi puffed his cheeks as he rinsed off, thinning his mouth and eyes into lines. They used to mess around, right here in the shower, where he would jerk off on her face and chest, just to watch it drip down her body. He could see her pretty face in his mind, cum sprayed across her cheeks and chin, mischievous smile on her lips. They had different schedules now, so she always showered before her stream, while he was at work.

Yoongi clicked his tongue and turned the water off, body still hot. He grabbed the white towel from the rack and dried his hair, making it stick up in every direction. He rubbed himself down, wicking the water away. It made him remember how her hair used to stick to her body after their shared showers and how he would lift it away to play with her nipples.

He huffed, seeing his phone on the bathroom sink. His friends needed help. How could they even suggest such nonsen–

Yoongi tried to wrap his towel around his waist. He could feel a draft. He looked down, raising his eyebrows.

His dick was pitching a music-festival, VIP-member-only sized tent.

Well.

He pursed his lips. He shouldn’t be that surprised. He had literally been thinking about his girlfriend’s naked body the entire time. His eyes glanced to his phone once again before he opened the bathroom door. He heard her sigh loudly.

“Noooo, that’s the third dodge! Am I ever going to play a game, chat?” she whined.

Yoongi padded out into the hallway. Technically he was already halfway there. Might as well. Was this the stupidest shit he was ever going to do? Maybe. But she wasn’t going to expect it, that’s for sure. The thought made Yoongi smirk.

“When is Jungkook going to duo with me again? I don’t know guys; he said he has finals soon so he has to focus on school.” He heard her click her tongue. “Get him on cam again? Oh, I see, that’s what you all wanted... At least let him get through university.”

Yoongi stopped at the doorframe. Her hands were on her chin and she was sighing, looking depressed at her long queue time.

“Ah, so unlucky. It must be everyone’s dinnertime.”

He called her name in the same tone he usually used.

Her head lifted and her eyes floated in his direction.

Yoongi dropped the towel.

In less than a second, her eyes grew three sizes, jaw dropping. His wet hair stuck to his forehead, shading his eyes a bit. He cocked an eyebrow, slow smirk on his lips.

“Anything you want for dinner?”

What.

The.

FUCK?

You heard your queue pop, but you were frozen in place, gawking open-mouthed at your boyfriend standing in the doorframe of your streaming room, butt-ass naked, cock hard as a rock, towel on the ground. Did he just..? What the…? This was Min Yoongi. Your mild-mannered, somewhat-lazy, preferred-to-be-asleep boyfriend. Not suddenly-trying-to-send-you-to-horny-jail-in-front-of-three-thousand viewers boyfriend! You blinked at him, stuttering.

“Y-Yoongi…?”

Oh shit. Shit, shit, shit. Your voice was a little too breathless, a little too shocked. And slightly too needy for Twitch chat. Your face was heating up fast. You whipped your head back to the screen, realizing you missed the queue. At this point, you didn’t give a single shit.

“You know what, guys,” you said shakily, laughing awkwardly. “I better help Yoongi with dinner and be a good girlfriend.” You rose, feeling the wetness between your legs. “See you tomorrow!”

And you immediately turned off the stream, fuck, you turned off your whole damn computer, mashing the power button, and throwing one of your spare hoodies over the webcam. You exploded from your T1 gaming chair, literally shooting it back three feet into the League plushes behind you, ripping your headset off, tossing it onto the keyboard. Yoongi looked surprised, as if he expected you to be demurer about it.

Yeah, that’s not kind of woman you were.

“Min Yoon-gi,” you hissed, stressing every syllable of his name. “How the fuck do you think you can just show up naked and not expect me to want to immediately fuck you?”

Yoongi chuckled. “I wanted to see your reaction.”

You narrowed your eyes, pressing him against the door with your body. “You don’t watch TikTok. Who put you up to this? Jimin? Taehyung? Jungkook?”

His voice was low and husky. “You know the mankae line are trouble.”

Your hand snaked up into his damp hair and you pulled him down for a sensual kiss. His soft, pink lips parted and you nipped at his lower lip, grinding deliciously into his hard cock. Your sweatpants and underwear were in the way, but you moaned into his mouth, tongue grazing against his lips.

Mentally, you thanked the three mankaes for giving Yoongi this wonderful idea.

He breathed against your lips, smirking.

“How many pieces of clothing are you wearing?” he purred.

You grinned into his kiss, tongue between your teeth. “Four.”

“On brand for you.”

And then you two stumbled into the hallway, Yoongi’s hands on the hem of your hoodie, pushing it up as you kissed him over and over, whispering his name, telling him how handsome he was, how perfectly sexy he was with his wet hair and soft skin. His lips curved upwards under yours, basking in your compliments, drinking them up.

“Count for me,” he drawled, pulling the black T1 hoodie up.

You slipped out of it, sliding down, hands splaying over Yoongi’s chest.

“One.”

He tossed it aside as your hand wrapped around his cock. A sharp gasp left his lips feeling you stroke him slowly, your hand snaking around his neck and bringing his face close to yours, lips on lips. His hands curled around your waist, moving up, grasping the hook-and-eye of your black bra. All the while slowly making your way to the bedroom, nipping at his lips, sucking on his tongue.

Yoongi pinched, releasing your bra. You released his cock, letting it slide off your shoulders.

“Two,” you moaned, feeling his hands on your breasts, rolling your nipples in between his fingers.

“Hah, your body is so fucking hot,” Yoongi murmured. “Missed fucking you.”

You snickered, licking his lips. “Why don’t you actually try to wake me up for once instead of using my hand to jack yourself off at two in the morning?”

His dark brown eyes went wide, shock creeping into his voice. “W-what? How did you…?”

You pushed him through the doorframe of the bedroom. “You think I don’t notice your dick in my hands?” You reached down now, gripping it again, sighing softly at his hardness. “I’m a light sleeper.”

He sputtered at you, fingers curling under the waistband of your sweatpants. “No, you’re not.”

You grinned. “Yeah, you’re right, but this your cock we’re talking about, and I love your cock, Yoongi, fuck,” you continued, pumping him slowly as you felt his length twitch in your hands, his hands pushing down your pants, sliding down your legs.

“Three,” he breathed softly.

You took his larger hand and wrapped it around yours, stepping out of your pants.

“Go on, Yoongi. Show me what you do when you think I’m asleep,” you said softly, nudging him to the bed and laying him down, down, crawling over him, staring into his beautiful dark eyes, falling more and more in love with him every second. Yoongi bit his lip, looking back at you, shifting your hand up and down his cock, whimpering as he jacked himself off, but with your hand and your eyes on him.

“Fuck, you look so pretty,” he mumbled. “Such perfectly shaped eyes.”

You leaned down, squeezing him a little harder, a tiny gasp brushing against your lips. “That’s you, my love.”

He smirked, his free hand hooking on the side of your panties.

“Hit me with the fourth shot,” Yoongi teased, grinning.

You kissed him lightly, smiling. “That’s going to be a critical hit.”

“Better be a critical hit all over my dick.”

You laughed, reaching over to the nightstand and pulling out the drawer, taking out a condom. The two of you pulled down your black panties, Yoongi completing the final number.

“Four,” he exhaled, nearly moaning at the sight of your juices snapping against your thigh.

“Me on top?” you asked, ripping the condom open.

Yoongi’s naughty smirk grew. “You do love me.”

You slid the condom down his length, both of you gasping as his cock throbbed in your hands. You slid up, holding him with two fingers as you sank down on him, tipping your head back at the feeling of Yoongi’s cock buried deep inside.

“I’ve determined we don’t fuck enough,” you muttered, rolling your hips at the delicious sensation of being stretched out by your lover.

“I should wake up earlier,” Yoongi hissed, hands twisting in the sheets. “So we can shower together again.”

“You miss that?” You began to move, riding him deliberately slow but rough, slapping your hips together. You were leaking all over his crotch and balls, adding to the sound. “Miss me on my knees for you, wet from head to toe?”

“Hah… I was thinking about it in the shower,” he panted, feeling you lean down to change the angle, rolling the entire lower half of your body to fuck him hard, fast, intensely squeezing his cock at every descent. “You look so good covered in my cum, my love.”

You smirked, arching an eyebrow. “Yeah? Take some pictures. Show your friends.”

Yoongi laughed, that attractive raspy laugh that showed his pink gums and his pretty white teeth as you rode him, chasing your orgasm and determined to get him to his. “They fucking wish they could see this body,” he growled, a touch of possessiveness in his voice that made your spine shiver deliciously. “Bet they wish they could see you riding my dick right now, your perfect tits and ass bouncing on top of me.”

You clenched him harder and he moaned, head pressed into the pillows, eyes closing, drowning in the feeling of you.

“Ask them,” you snickered. “I already know Jimin’s answer.”

Yoongi gave you an open-mouthed smirk. “That fucking pervert.”

You slammed your hips together tightening your jaw and your core, sucking in his entire length, every contour imprinted into you, every vein pulsing into your walls, Yoongi so fucked out and gone under you, the best image in the entire fucking world. You leaned your head back, gasping triumphantly as the pleasure finally dropped, showering over you, your hips shaking, pussy throbbing all around him, splattering onto his crotch. Yoongi groaned, smacking his fists against the sheets as he shot up into you, cock swelling against your walls, choking out your name due to the strength of your orgasm. You felt your pussy milking him for every drop, draining him. Yoongi’s hips jerked involuntarily up towards you, squelching loudly and lewdly.

Fuck, you loved him.

You bent down, hand between your bodies, holding the condom down as you kissed his open mouth, tongue sliding in to stroke his, murmuring to him how much you loved him. Yoongi panted into your lips, hot erotic breaths that made you moan as you slowly removed yourself from his softening cock. He opened his eyes, half-lidded, drunk with pleasure. His voice was breathless, content.

“I love you.”

You smirked.

“Drop your towel some more, but maybe when I’m not live streaming.”

Yoongi laughed and you laughed too, because in the end it was still hilarious.

masterpost

#yoongi x reader #min yoongi x reader #yoongi smut #bts smut #yoongi x you #min yoongi x you #min yoongi smut

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giftwrappingpaper · 3 years

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wangxian bakery au

prompt: "I'd love to enable a creator to write/draw that self-indulgent niche workplace AU they've always wanted to make."

Lan Zhan finds Wei Ying baking bread in the kitchen of a hole-in-the-wall bakery in Yiling.

-----

A low, all too familiar voice hesitantly calls his name. "Wei Ying?"

No fucking way. Wei Ying looks up, raised eyebrows wrinkling his flour-dusted forehead. Yep, that’s Lan Zhan alright; no matter how many years pass, Wei Ying could recognize that face anywhere. His sharp, meticulously perfect appearance makes him look like a high-fashion magazine model cutout slapped on a stock photo of yellowed plaster and secondhand baking equipment.

“No customers in the back,” Wei Ying advises before returning his attention to the dough in his hands. A picture of informality, with a small smirk playing on his lips — a half-hearted attempt to conceal the shock and surmounting panic bubbling in his gut.

How the hell did he find me? one side of his brain despairs, while the other side reassures that at least it isn’t Jiang Cheng.

Lan Zhan continues his stalwart breach of Burial Bakery’s kitchen. What a rebel. “Wei Ying,” he says again.

“That’s me.”

“You’re here.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“You’re in a...bakery. Baking.”

Wei Ying breathed in the calming smell of fresh sourdough and tangy levain. Thank the heavens he had been able to convince Wen Ning to take a lunch break, leaving Wei Ying to man the kitchen alone. This isn’t going to be pretty.

“That’s kinda what we do here, yeah,” he says, eyes trained on his workbench, crowded with floured bannetons and formless lumps of dough. “A helping hand would be nice. I’d appreciate that much more than the gawking.”

Lan Zhan blinks, jawing clenching and ears flushing. Wei Ying’s smirk lifts into something softer. Even after all this time, it’s still so easy to rile him up.

“How’d you even find me, anyway?” he wonders, stretching his dough flat against the workbench, stopping right when it’s about to rip. Gently, of course. Wouldn’t want to pop the gas built up after hours of proofing.

“The back door is open,” Lan Zhan answers faintly. His expression mirrors the face of a guy after finding a years-long missing sock long since chalked off as having been eaten by the dryer. “I saw you from the counter.”

A quick glance to the entrance confirms this. Wen Ning must’ve forgotten to close the door when he left. Damn, that’s no good. Can’t let the cold air flow in. Might mess with the dough proofing in the walk-in.

“Could you close that for me?” Wei Ying asks, briefly letting go of the dough to rub the back of his neck. When Lan Zhan continues to stand there, motionless like a beautiful, bewildered statue, Wei Ying tsks and says, “I’m not going anywhere, Lan Zhan. Gotta get yesterday's proofed loaves in the oven by the hour.”

Miraculously, Lan Zhan obeys. Wei Ying half expected him not to. He and Lan Zhan have never been the closest of friends; Wei Ying was an annoying student, and Lan Zhan has a zero tolerance for annoying classmates. But people can change, he supposes. It’s been over four years, and neither of them are the same people they were before Wei Ying packed up his things and gave up his cushioned life in the Jiang estate and his scholarship to one of the most prestigious universities in the country to start slumming it with the Wen siblings and A-Yuan in their closet of an apartment.

“Aw, thanks,” Wei Ying says when Lan Zhan returns. He belatedly realizes that he should’ve asked Lan Zhan to close the door behind him as he leaves the kitchen that he, as a non-employee, isn’t supposed to be in. Oh well; Wen Qing can chew him out for all the health codes he’s violating later. Isn’t she supposed to be manning the front? Lan Zhan must have snuck past her to get here, so she’s just as guilty.

“So you’ve been here the whole time?” Lan Zhan says, watching Wei Ying shape the dough. “Since you — left?”

“Basically.” Stitch the dough into itself. Then fold and tuck. Push the dough underneath itself with the palm of your hands to create surface tension, giving the newly formed loaf that tight, professional finish. Took Wei Ying ages to get the method down pat enough to be consistent. “Wanted to get out of the Jiangs’ hair, so I left soon after dropping out of uni.”

Dust the loaf with rice flour. Place it into a banneton, seam side up. Into the rack, then repeat. “A friend of mine had just inherited their family bakery. I volunteered to help out, and it eventually ended up becoming a full-time thing.”

Lan Zhan stands there without a word — not that Wei Ying minds. He hadn’t let himself dream they’d see each other again, hadn’t wanted to get his hopes up that he'd be lucky enough to see a familiar face again after all this time. Damn, he thinks, sneaking glance after glance between the loaves he’s shaping, he’s more handsome now than ever. Who knew the gorgeous teenager he’d harassed throughout two years of university would turn out to become a gorgeous adult who somehow stumbles into Wei Ying’s bakery? Even the unflattering cast of the yellow, flickering overhead light Wen Qing had been meaning to replace can’t wash out how black Lan Zhan’s hair is, how his skin is as smooth as a baby’s. How golden his eyes are, peering at Wei Ying as if he’s the sunrise after a long, cloudy night.

Bah. Where the hell did that come from? Maybe Wei Ying really is as self-centered as Aunt Yu claimed him to be.

“I wasn’t aware of your...baking aspirations,” Lan Zhan says, causing Wei Ying to choke out a laugh. He’d forgotten how funny Lan Zhan could be.

“Me neither,” Wei Ying admits. He sidesteps the kitchen mixer he’d spent the last year fixing up — he’d bought it in a sorry state, but Hobart engines are built to last a lifetime, and he couldn’t pass up the deal he paid for — to place another filled banneton into the rack. “But I’m not too mad at where I’ve ended up. Speaking of. How did you end up here?”

Lan Zhan's shoulders hunch suspiciously, and Wei Ying's eyebrows arch into fucking parabolas. “I wanted bread,” Lan Zhan replies defensively. “So I went to a bakery.”

Wei Ying scoffs, unimpressed. “A bakery all the way in Yiling?”

Lan Zhan glances away. “I travel a lot for work.”

Fine — he’ll let it go for now. “Well, as long as you don’t tell anyone back home about this, I guess it’s fine.” Wei Ying pauses. “You’re not gonna rat me out, are you?”

The thought should scare him, but a traitorously large part of him thrills at it instead. The Jiangs' are a key food supplier for the Lans' hotel chain, so Lan Zhan has to have some form of communication with them. Does Jiejie think about him from time to time? And Jiang Cheng...well. They’re still brothers, aren't they? Surely he must, at some small capacity, miss him.

But no brotherly love, whatever left there may be, could erase this: the cold silence that hung over the Jiang family table whenever Wei Ying would show up for dinner. Aunt Yu’s constant disapproval and Jiang Cheng’s wavering willingness to put up with it. The car ride. The screech of metal. The hospital said their Range Rover flipped four times. Wei Ying must have passed out after the first. But he was lucky: only a broken arm and whiplash. He had lied about being too hurt to attend the funeral.

It had been a good decision to leave. It had to be.

The back of his neck stings; a constant reminder. He hangs his head low as he stitches the dough.

“I’m not going to...rat you out,” Lan Zhan denies. He’s closer than he’d been since the last time Wei Ying looked up, his slack-clad hip brushing against the corner of Wei Ying’s workbench. “Not if you don’t want me to.”

“I don’t. Thanks.” Another banneton in the rack. Slower output than usual. He’s going to have to speed up to reach today’s quota. He gestures to the door. “Now, if you’re not gonna help out…”

Lan Zhan doesn’t take the hint. “You left. Without saying goodbye.”

“Must’ve forgotten to leave a note,” Wei Ying says, nonplussed.

“No one knew where you had gone off to.”

“Kinda preferred it that way.”

“But I didn’t —” Lan Zhan stops. Takes a breath. This is the most emotional Wei Ying has ever seen him, if mildly discomfited could constitute as emotional.

When he meets Wei Ying’s eyes again, his face is in its usual state of aloofness. “I was worried about you,” he tells him. “I wish I had known that you were alright.”

A block of guilt presses on Wei Ying’s shoulders. “Oh,” he says. “Sorry.”

Lan Zhan shakes his head. “Don’t apologize.”

“It’s just — with all that happened with the, the accident, and the handling of the estate —”

“You don’t need to explain anything to me you’re not comfortable with.”

“And my relationship with Jiang Cheng was down the fucking gutter —”

“He misses you.”

“I just felt that it everything would’ve been better off if —”

“I understand.”

“— I just left, y’know?”

At this, Lan Zhan frowns. “I fail to see how your sudden disappearance made anything better,” he says.

“Well, you weren’t there.” Wei Ying sighs, and what little fight he had to defend himself from the past drops to the floor. “I don’t want to argue with you.”

Lan Zhan bristles. “I didn’t mean to — that’s not why I’m here.”

Then why are you here? But Wei Ying is done playing this game. “Look, it’s really nice to see you again. But I kind of have a lot on my plate right now, so if you don’t mind.” This time, his gesture to the door is clear. Leave.

Of course Lan Zhan doesn’t leave; he’s always been so damn stubborn. After a beat, he walks over to the empty sink — Wei Ying prefers to wash the dishes as he goes — and washes his hands. Dries them. Rolls up the sleeves of his button up, revealing forearms Wei Ying can’t help but swallow at. Makes his way to Wei Ying’s side, staring down at the lumps of dough like how a runner glares at the bottom of her shoe after stepping on a pile of dogshit.

“Alright,” he says, “how do I do this?”

Wei Ying blinks. “What?” he asks, like an idiot.

Lan Zhan experimentally cups the nearest dough mound with his palms. It sticks to his hands as he lifts them, streaks of the stuff already clinging to his slender fingers.

“Gross,” he says, monotone, pinching two ends to stretch it; an imitation, Wei Ying realizes, of his own technique.

Wei Ying stares. An incredulous smile spreads across his lips. “You’re —” He laughs. “You’re so weird, Lan Zhan.”

Lan Zhan squints at him, confused, hands still making a mess out of the dough. “You asked for my help.”

Perhaps all those years away from home was enough penance for, at the very least, this. “Yeah," he says, soft. "I guess I did.” Wei Ying sways closer to Lan Zhan’s side. He discreetly sniffs the air in a selfish bid to find...ah, there it is, masked between notes of wheat flour and sourdough starter: sandalwood aftershave, brushing past Wei Ying's nose when Lan Zhan turns to him with an expectant glance.

Wei Ying laughs again. “No, not like that. Like this.”

He lays a floured hand over Lan Zhan’s and, together, they get to work.

-----

also posted on ao3

promo post on twitter

fic commissions

#mdzs #wangxian #cql #the untamed #wei wuxian #lan wangji #mdzs fic #cql fic #mo dao zu shi #myfic

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saintstrawberry · 3 years

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When the Night is Over/Just What I Needed

Second Chapter is up!

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27733207/chapters/68086045#workskin

Ships:

bokuaka, kuroken, kagehina, daisuga, daiaka, iwaoi

Description:

A surprise visit, mariokart, and Oikawa. Malibu also makes an appearance (Or multiple).

Notes: Akaashi has a bad memory. Relatable content.

Songs I recommend for this chap are Dionysus by the Buttertones, Best Interest by Tyler the Creator (for Kuroo), and Shampoo Bottles by Peach Pit for the ending. I promise Bokuto will show up in the next chap! >.<

I also make a reference to Natsume Ono because she smacks! Read her manga Not Simple; it is fantastic!

Thank you for reading!

—————

Shampoo Bottles

It’s Saturday, something Akaashi doesn’t realize until he is flying halfway out his front door and huffing a breath at his phone screen’s mocking display: 6:30 AM, Saturday, June 14th. Exactly a week before Hinata’s birthday.

He blinks and remembers the night before, when he was nursing a red wine and a deadline for his “Ono Natsume: Shouting for the Voiceless” article. He remembers, vaguely, submitting the piece at 11:50 and dropping his head right there on his cheap Ikea desk, exhausted.

Presently, he’s nodding awkwardly at his neighbor (leaving the complex to work out, no less) and trying to make it look, somehow, like he meant to open his front door only to close it seconds later.

Toeing off his work shoes and entirely caught off guard by the idea of a day off, Akaashi retreats to his bed. He passes out almost as soon as his foggy head hits the pillow, dreaming of nothing. The next time he opens his eyes, his breath and body still completely.

“Mornin’, sleeping beauty! It’s ten, I’m surprised you slept so long!”

“Kuroo-san, why are you in my apartment?”

The offender offers no answer but grins brilliantly, gold irises level with Akaashi’s blue-green.

“And just how long have you been here anyway?” Kuroo ignores him again, instead choosing to stand from his squatting position. His hands at his hips, Kuroo wears a white oversized Bouncing Ball hoodie and black skinny jeans. Much to Akaashi’s discomfort, he still has his shoes on- red and white high top sneakers with the laces tucked in. As always, the guy’s flawlessly disheveled, silver jewelry glinting from his ears and neck.

Akaashi groans and plants his face in his pillow. It’s too early for the young, beautiful, and rich.

Kuroo, unsurprisingly, doesn’t yield Akaashi’s thoughts and scoffs once. He moves to draw open the curtains in his room. Keiji can’t help but grimace as he feels his skin bathed in hot summer light.

“Man. You should really dust your windowsills. Do you even ever open these things?! You’re not some bat, ‘Kaashi. You need fresh air.”

“I think bats need air too,” Akaashi mumbles into the pillow.

Kuroo waves a dismissive hand and turns to survey him, arms folded across a broad chest. Keiji reluctantly turns his head to address his stare, squinting without the aid of his glasses or contacts. Kuroo’s bedhead is seemingly even worse today- probably from whatever plane he just hopped out of. The latter smirks devilishly.

“Well. Are you gonna welcome me back or what?”

“So you didn’t expect to land in Tokyo until Thursday?” Akaashi asks this of Kuroo about 45 minutes after his intrusion into the writer’s apartment. The pair are getting brunch in some needlessly swanky rooftop restaurant, one where Kuroo insisted he wouldn’t get recognized. Akaashi raised his eyebrows at that- his friend had stuffed his signature messy locks into one of Akaashi’s ratty baseball caps and donned aviators the moment they got outside.

No matter to him, anyway. Akaashi got fancy champagne out of the deal.

“Sure didn’t. Management canceled the show in Singapore last minute. Something about the venue. Fuck if I know,” Kuroo explains almost incoherently through colossal bites of egg.

“What matters is nobody got hurt. We refunded tickets and rescheduled the gig. S’all good. I’m just happy to be back home with my buddy!” Kuroo reaches over to slap Akaashi on the back with a friendly grin.

He’s sputtering over his mimosa when Kuroo continues, “Can’t wait to surprise Kenma tonight, either. Can you imagine his face?"

“Yeah, actually, I can,” Akaashi slouches his shoulders forward in his chair with an uninterested expression and quirks up an eyebrow ever so slightly, impersonating his best friend.

“Hey, that was pretty good! Though I guess it’s not that hard for you. You’re both pretty stoic. Like Easter Island Heads.”

Akaashi swats at him half-heartedly. Kuroo laughs.

“Anyway, you’re lucky I didn’t call him immediately this morning- or the police for that matter,” Akaashi says matter of factly. Kuroo clutches at his heart dramatically.

“Akaashi-kun. You wound me. I am the furthest from a criminal.”

Akaashi huffs a laugh.

“Tell the Osaka police force that.”

“Hey! What, a guy can’t take a piss anymore?”

“Not, apparently, from the top of the Umeda Sky Building-”

“To be fair, I didn’t know the police officer was right there,” Kuroo interjects.

“-After downing half a bottle of Malibu with Oikawa. And you were 17. You were lucky you didn’t get charged with public indecency.”

Kuroo pouts but offers no petition.

“Guilty as charged, I suppose. Hey, speaking of police officers-”

Akaashi clears his throat and interrupts, “Speaking of drinking, how was Singapore?”

Kuroo takes the hint and stretches back in his chair, raising his third bloody mary to his lips.

“Didn’t get much time there, only about four days before I got the call about the cancellation. Flew straight here after the news.”

Straight to Kenma, Akaashi supplies mentally, grinning fondly at his friends’ relationship.

“Anyway, it was pretty mild, all things considered. Bokuto seemed to like the clubbing scene more than I did. Matter of fact, he’s staying there ‘til the next concert.”

“Bokuto?” Akaashi says, cutting into his eggs and watching the yolk spill onto his fork.

Kuroo, now onto his nearly 2,500 yen crepe, takes a break from his meal to look up at him with a puzzled stare.

“My tourmate? Bokuto Koutarou? X. Ace?”

Akaashi meets his eyes blankly.

“I guess it makes sense his stage name doesn’t ring a bell, but I’m surprised you don’t know about the guy’s v-ball career.”

The blue-eyed 24 year old drops his gaze to the napkin in his lap.

“Sorry, sorry. Touchy topic.”

Pain-in-the-ass-Kuroo-san.

“Anyway, you should really check out some of his matches with the Panthers.”

“He was signed with the Panthers?” Akaashi sputters, clapping his mouth shut immediately after.

Kuroo cackles.

“Don’t give yourself a heart attack, Akaashi. It’s okay to be impressed- it’s impressive. He’s crazy. You’ll be meeting him soon.”

Akaashi only hums in response.

"You're coming to the show, right?"

Akaashi hums again.

"Big talker today, huh, Keiji?"

"Bah."

“Right. So.. you baited yourself a hook yet?”

“Beg your pardon?”

“You know. After Daichi,” Kuroo tries again.

No, he really hasn’t.

Akaashi downs the rest of his drink. He peers into his empty glass in response.

“Haven’t thought about it really. He said it himself- I don’t have the time.”

“Oh, Keiji. Nevermind him.”

“Don’t sigh like that. Did you fly all the way from China to pity me?”

The rapper shakes his head, “No, I didn’t. I just want you to-”

“Be as happy as you are with Kenma,” Keiji finishes.

Kuroo gives a gentle smile, “Can you blame me?”

“God. You two are worse than the shoujo manga I have to review.”

“But twice as fun.”

“Shut up and eat your crepe.”

Kuroo happily complies, “Don’t have to tell me twice.”

“I’m glad you’re home, Kuroo-san,” Akaashi remarks. And he is. Even with his busy lifestyle as a chart-topping artist, Kuroo somehow manages to draw Kenma and Akaashi out of the house.

Kuroo and Kenma are both relatively new to their fame- about three years out from Kuroo’s first breakthrough hit and four since Kenma first started his Bouncing Ball Youtube channel- but their fans are… dedicated. Akaashi often marvels at how even Kenma takes it in stride. He's entertaining to watch and a seasoned video game expert. And Kuroo... Akaashi looks to the man and the ketchup stain on his lip.

"What?"

Well, they both deserve their good fortune.

"Nothing, nothing."

He has interviewed them each multiple times for the journal. The good thing about his friends’ famous status is that Akaashi gets to profit from it as well. He tells Kuroo as much and the latter almost chokes on his stupidly expensive breakfast laughing. Even Akaashi cracks a small grin.

“I told that was him!” The writer hears two girlish voices behind him, talking in excited whispers.

“E-Excuse me, K-Kuroo-san?”

The rapper breaks out in a large grin and stands, bowing formally at the pair.

“Yes? Hello, ladies. Are you two fans of mine?”

“Yes!! Very much so! I loved your new song!” The girl, about 17 with dark lashes and fire red hair, praises politely.

“Would, would you mind taking a picture with us!?” The other chirps.

“Not at all! Akaashi, my pal, would you be a dear and snap some shots?” It takes everything for Akaashi not to roll his eyes.

“But of course.”

--------------------

This is how Akaashi comes to search up the 2018 Panthers roster on his phone’s Google. He gives up his sleuthing when he realizes he doesn’t remember the guy’s name or know what he looks like.

He forgets about the whole thing until later that night, at Kenma’s celebration party for 5 million followers. It’s small, of course, about ten of them drinking champagne and playing drinking games. Akaashi knows Hinata did all the planning anyway, despite the event being at Kenma’s. The trio is standing off to the side when Akaashi pulls out his phone briefly to check the time.

Kuroo should be here any minute, he thinks. Hinata peers too, instinctually curious.

“Hey! Whatcha looking up the Panthers for? That’s not the latest roster, you know! Ooh, you’re looking up X-Ace, right?! Seeeeee, I knew you’d like him!”

Akaashi looks down at the picture Hinata points to. The guy’s sturdy and smug with one thick eyebrow raised. His chest is broad and his eyes are perfectly golden. The first thing Akaashi notices, however, is his hair. Absolutely ridiculous, he thinks. Makes sense that this guy’s Hinata’s idol.

Kenma raises his eyebrows.

“What made you do that?” he asks.

“Oh, uh, just...curious.”

Kenma looks like he’s about to say more when Oikawa joins their group with a boisterous, “Pudding Head! Congratsssss!” He pinches the smaller’s cheeks, who just about hisses in response.

Akaashi, grateful for Oikawa’s interruption, takes another quick glance at… X-Ace, and pockets his phone.

Hinata grins wide when Tooru, seemingly already a bit tipsy, ruffles his hair.

“Thanks, Oikawa-san," Kenma begrudgingly replies.

“You know, Kuroo is-”

Akaashi, ever vigilant, cuts in immediately, “-is so happy for you, Ken.”

Oikawa seems to get the hint, his eyes widening in realization.

“He sure is! Want some more alcohol?” The chestnut-haired friend of Kuroo’s quickly shoves his bottle of strawberry rum in Kenma’s face.

“You know I hate your sticky Malibu. Why are you guys acting all weird?”

Hinata, completely oblivious to the unspoken diaogue between Akaashi and Oikawa, tugs Kenma’s shirt.

“Kenma, Kenma! We should stream!!”

“Hey, that’s not too bad an idea, Shoyo,” Akaashi adds, if just to distract him.

“Sure, we could play some Mario-Kart. My fans seem to like you guys. Just don’t do anything stupid, Tooru.”

“Who, me?! And when do I-” Oikawa starts dramatically. The rest of the men send him a collective stare which answers his question before he can even finish it. He crosses his arms with a huff.

“Whatever. I call Princess Peach.”

--------------

After Kenma finishes setting up the Livestream and the small group has gained over a couple thousand viewers, Akaashi is in dead last as Blooper. Well, almost dead last, expect for...

“How am I losing? No fair, Kozume!” Oikawa whines.

“Me? What did I do?” Kenma-san replies, uninterested. Unsurprisingly, the Youtuber is in first place with his signature Toad.

“I don’t know, your fancy settings or something. Iwa-chan! Back me up, here!”

“It’s ‘cause you suck, Trashy-kawa,” Iwaizumi-san, whom the quartet bribed into playing with agedashi dofu, doesn’t hesitate to retaliate. His player, Bowser, is in second, with Hinata close behind as Yoshi.

“Take that, Hajime-san! Oh, shoot, sorry, Akaashi-san!” Hinata shouts, rising from his seat as he hurls a red shell, accidentally hitting Keiji.

“Hinata, language!” Kuroo’s smooth voice floods the apartment in mock disapproval. Kenma whips his head so fast he drops his controller. The blonde doesn’t say anything but slowly rises to his feet, then breaks into a short run at the sight of his boyfriend. The former picks up Kenma effortlessly and twirls him in a tight embrace. Akaashi looks on fondly.

“Kuroo-san!” Hinata exclaims, jumping up excitedly.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, Tetsuro’s home. I’m about to kick all of your asses!” Oikawa waves away his entrance, sticking out his tongue. Iwaizumi slaps him on the back of the head.

The stream chat has exploded at the sound of Kuroo.

bb-corp: is that Kuroo???

applephi: NO WAY djwhdnbwibdfwq

yoyotetsuro: couple goals

kurokenxx: will anyone ever love me like Kuroo loves Kenma?

keeeeenmaaa_: I think this is the first time BouncingBall’s lost at Mariokart

----------

A little tired and a lot tipsy, Akaashi insists on taking a cab home. It doesn't feel right to invade Kenma's when the Kuroo's home. Keiji could tell the pair... needed their space for the night. He splits the ride with Hinata, who talks his ear off the whole way about Kuroo's arrival and how badly he wishes he had the money to go to a concert. Akaashi smirks at that, just a little. Shoyo exits the vehicle with an enthusiastic, "Bye, 'Kaashi-san!! I'll see you soon! Maybe I'll come to the store, or, or, you can come to see me and Tobio-chan! He didn't come out tonight because he has a game tomorrow, but-" The rest of his goodbye is drowned out by him closing the door.

"I apologize for the noise," Keiji addresses the driver. She makes a noise of recognition and drops him off 15 minutes later. He thinks about his conversation with Kuroo about "baiting his hook" as he enters his living room, dropping his keys unceremoniously on the floor next to his door. What does that even mean? Akaashi doesn't exactly meet a lot of people with his work and his friends are all, well, with each other. He's happy for them and all, but sometimes being around so many couples gets a bit nauseating. Akaashi is struck with a small wave of loneliness when he waters his small bamboo plant, made worse by the two shots of Malibu Oikawa shoved down his throat. This is all I have to come home to, a fucking bamboo plant. Akaashi stares at its braided stalks with a vengeance. Not a second later, he pets the leaves in apology. I shouldn't take this out on the plant.

He's always been relatively independent, but having someone felt kind of... nice, for a change. It's been almost a year since Daichi left, and probably 6 months since he and Suga got together. It's one of those things that Akaashi didn't process for awhile, forcing him to fend for himself when the realization came to knock him on his ass months down the line. He's been confronting turned over picture frames and empty sheets ever since.

And so it goes.

He pads over to his bed with a sigh and for the second time today, falls asleep and dreams of nothing.

#bokuaka #kagehina #iwaoi #fanfiction #haikyuu #kuroken #daisuga #daiaka #akaashi keiji #tsukishima kei #daichi sawamura #sugawara koushi #kuroo tetsurō #bokuto kotarou #kenma kozume #oikawa tooru #iwaizumi hajime #hinata shoyo #kageyama tobio

11 notes · View notes

wethepixies · 4 years

Photo

Welcome to part two of our interview series, pixies! Today, we’re presenting our interview with four of the flaptastic people who make this rewrite possible. They had a lot to say, so this post is rather long - keep reading to see the full interviews!

Our first two Game Creator interviews feature two of our beloved artists - Rachel and Ci.

How did you first find out about the WTP project, and what inspired you to start working as an artist?

Rachel: In a computer graphics class I took last semester, one of our projects reminded me and my friend of Pixie Hollow, so we were reminiscing about the game and I really wanted to see if there was a rewritten version of it. When I found WTP and saw they were accepting artist applications, I was super excited because I loved the game and was starting to get into animation at the time as well. I also just adore the process of game development in general, so I was thrilled to become a part of WTP.

Ci was introduced to the project by a friend who’s also a staff member!

What is your favorite part of your job as a WTP artist?

Rachel: My favorite part is being able to contribute my work to a bigger project. Seeing the art I worked on in the game is really exciting to me. Just knowing that the work you put in is helping to further the game is really cool. As for my favorite thing to work on, it’s really strange, but I enjoy creating the UI buttons and signs for different meadows or shops.They’re super small and no one really pays attention to them, but they’re also extremely necessary so I guess I just like to make them, haha. They don’t always take too long to make but I think they’re cute. Also, I’m especially excited for all the new meadows, as I really enjoy helping to restore the beautiful art for the meadows.

Check out this gorgeous sign that Rachel restored for one of our meadow teleporters!

Ci: My favorite piece of art that I’ve created for WTP was probably a background I restored for a general winter theme/season back when I first joined. It’s not being used right now, but it’s pretty and you’ll just have to take my word for it :’)

How long does it take for you to work on art for WTP, and how do you fit that in your schedule?

Rachel: The time it takes really depends on how much of the project we have completed already. Oftentimes we’ll be working collaboratively and finish what other people have started. So if we are working on something from scratch it can take quite a while, but sometimes it’s just a matter of adding finishing touches and compiling pieces together to create a finished product. And each task takes a different amount of time. For instance, resizing something small will take a few minutes, but creating an atlas for fairy clothing can take hours, especially when you need to restore an item from scratch. Either way, I think it’s still beneficial for us to take our time to create the best product we can. Personally, I don’t always get to work everyday, but when I do, I’ll spend hours because I like to finish tasks in one sitting if I can, although I can’t always haha. I think that working in moderation is always a good idea as long as you’re getting your work done, and knowing we have so many fans really pushes me to get tasks done and do them well. As for fitting it into my schedule, because of quarantine, I definitely have a lot more time to work on WTP, but during the school semester I would have to plan out what I needed to get done and when I needed to do it in order make sure I could get all of my school projects and WTP work done on certain days in order to avoid as much stress as possible.

Ci: I don’t have time to work on artwork daily, but I do try to stay on top of what other people are working on, so a small chunk of my day is dedicated to discord. Sometimes I’ll be busy for weeks and do a whole bunch of tasks afterwards in one go, and sometimes I try to take on smaller things (pre-corona I’d sometimes spend time between lectures because that’s often the only time I have!). Some tasks are 5 minute jobs, like UI, but others, like adding clothing, take a few hours. Backgrounds probably take me the longest. A couple hours for a few days, if I have time to work on them daily. They’re really fun when starting!! but after day 3 it’s quite the grind. I like to sleep on those, since there’s so much detail in the PH backgrounds that I’ll inevitably miss something.

Rachel, you mentioned atlases and spritesheets - can you explain what they are and how you use them?

Rachel: An atlas and spritesheet contains all of the different variations of a clothing item or anything you can change on the fairy. So for instance, the hair atlas has all of the different types of hair you can choose when creating your fairy packed into one single file. So in order to make one you have to create all the hair pieces, position them correctly on a fairy reference, export each hair image, and then combine them all onto the atlas file. Then a json file is also created to describe where each image is in the file in order to use it in the game. The spritesheet is similar and is basically a horizontal version of the atlas with all of the images that we use in CAF to scroll through whatever you’re changing.

Do you start the graphics by hand or via some digital web design program?

Rachel: I almost always use digital programs. Sometimes I’ll plan something out quickly on paper but most of the time I’ll use Photoshop. We also use DragonBones for animation.

Ci: All of the research we do is online, so it saves a couple of steps and retains image quality to just keep everything digital. I also don’t have a scanner :’)

And finally, what’s the most challenging piece of art that you’ve made for WTP?

Rachel: The most challenging piece that I’ve done for WTP was probably the hair atlas for when a player creates a fairy because it was the first project I was taking on. All the hair was made already, I just had to resize, reposition, and fix any pieces that were lower quality, and although it was daunting at first, once I started, I was able to get the hang of it (even if it took a few tries), and now I’m super happy I learned how to do it.

Ci: We were missing a whole area of the CAF background (the part that shows up when you’re picking a name) that got passed around for one or two months, and eventually I got to work on it. It was the closest to a custom piece of art that I’ve made for WTP; the middle was a giant blur when I got to it. My motivation to complete it was honestly just being able to get it off the to-do list forever, when I was done I posted a before and after to the staff chat (which I try not to do bc it’s not really productive) because I was so excited about it :’))

__________________

We had so much fun learning more about our artists’ jobs! Next up, we decided to sit down with WTP game developer and administrator Teresa!

How did you first find out about the WTP project, and what inspired you to start working as a developer?

Teresa: A friend I made in the Pixie Hollow community said that her favorite mini game was Bubble Bounce, so I decided to make it for her. I had started prototyping and showing it around, and someone from WTP saw my work and invited me to join the team.

As we know, WTP is a voluntary project. How do you fit working on WTP into your schedule?

Teresa: I’m actually quite good at time management, and I’ve decided to make WTP a priority. That means that I can’t always say ‘yes’ to other things I want to do, but that’s ok.

What are some of the main things you look for when adding staff members?

Teresa: You need to be able to take criticism well and communicate effectively. A certain level of quality needs to be maintained to build a good game, and criticism sheds light on any blind spots you may have. If you aren’t communicating clearly and frequently, then your value to the team is very low – everyone needs to be on the same page so that work doesn’t get redone and wasted, and to keep an accurate development schedule. Being willing to devote more than a couple of hours a week is also a major plus.

How do you decide which parts of the game you should work on first?

Teresa: There’s this concept called the Minimum Viable Product. Basically, you just strip the project down to what is necessary and work out the kinks. Then you can add new features that enhance the gameplay.

What’s the most challenging issue you’ve faced while creating the game?

Teresa: There was a problem with the animation plugin that I was hoping would be fixed by the maintainers before the demo release. It was a really big deal, the game would be entirely unplayable. At the last minute, I had to dig into the plugins source code and figure it out myself. In the end, it wasn’t actually so difficult – but boy was it stressful. Really I would say that the biggest problems have stemmed from not having enough artists on the team! There have been multiple times where we had to delay updates because we didn’t have all of the assets ready for me to use in the game.

How do you go about fixing a game bug?

Teresa: Gather all the info I can from users experiencing the bug, and try to reproduce it. Just observing the behavior is often enough to figure out the problem. When it’s not, check the logs or step through with the debugger.

Have you ever worked on or made a game before WTP?

Teresa: I’ve worked a bit on some 3D open source game projects, never worked on the multiplayer parts before, though. I also make mods for games.

Lastly, what are your favorite and most rewarding parts of being a game developer?

Teresa: Pushing the boundaries of my knowledge and comfort zone, definitely. As a developer, I’ve learned a lot of new technologies and some new domains specifically for WTP. I also find being able to fix things that I don’t like about games very rewarding. Being an administrator has benefitted me as well. As an admin, I’ve had to cultivate skills in team leadership and project management.

__________________

Finally, we interviewed Lavender Merryheart, our sound designer.

First off, how did you first find out about the WTP project?

Lavender: I found WTP from a Youtube video, and played the demo. I was excited to be able to re-visit PH and when I saw the audio designer application, I wanted to help out however I could!

Are you remaking the music from scratch based on any remaining audio from sources like youtube?

Lavender: Both! We salvage what we can, and re-create what’s needed if. In the future, there will be some new, original music too! When we need a sound effect or music, we first check to see if there’s a good quality clip preserved of the original. It needs to be clear and without extra background sounds. If we can’t find any, then I will dissect the sound or song and try to figure out how it was made, then recreate it.

You mentioned that you make new sounds if needed, how do you go about making them?

Lavender: New sound effects are made by piecing different recordings together, such as the audio you hear when you click the talent orbs, which was re-made from the sounds of a heavy book shutting and wind chimes. If we need to remake a song, I make a new track by re-recording each instrument’s part on a midi keyboard. Then it will be edited it in Logic Pro X, using instruments and synths from the Kontakt audio library.

What’s the part of being an audio designer that you’re most excited about?

Lavender: I’m most excited about getting to write new music for the game! I can’t reveal to you what it’s going to be used for yet, but in the process for the last WTP track I wrote, I thought about how to represent the area it will be used for and what instruments and mood would suit it the best. It was a lot of fun to try to both express my style and also give it that Pixie-Hollow-sound!

Finally, how do you fit working on WTP into your schedule?

Lavender: I keep a to-do list and project notes to help organize what needs to be done, and work on WTP between class assignments. To refrain from burning out, I try to spread out my different tasks and work on a variety of things.

__________________

After we learned about what goes on behind the scenes on WTP, we wanted to learn a little bit about some future plans and hopes the staff have for the game.

Art wise, what sorts of things will be designed from scratch in the future?

Rachel: Although we still have a long way to go before creating our own work as we have to replicate what was in the original game first, I believe that new clothing and hair might be designed from scratch in the future.

Ci: Right now, we’re still committed to restoring the game in its original form–this means that we try not to design anything from scratch. We’ve discussed the possibility of custom content in the future (items + clothing, pets, meadows, maybe even minigames?), and when the time comes, all of that will be built from scratch. That said, pertaining to the look and feel of the original pixie hollow will be a priority for those updates too.

What game feature from Pixie Hollow are you most excited to have?

Teresa: Personally, I am excited for the skill system and wilderness! We have some new ideas to try out, but I don’t want to spoil anything.

Do you plan to have seasonal differences and events, as well as competitions and activities?

Teresa: Yep! Can’t wait! We are already featuring player’s outfits in the shop catalogue, so that’s sort of a mini fashion spotlight, but there’s definitely more exciting things to come. Fashion spotlight was one of the most beloved competitions/events in the original Pixie Hollow!

In the future, will the game be available for mobile and/or consoles?

Teresa: You can already play WTP on mobile! At some point we will have options that allow the game to run smoother on mobile devices. Console versions won’t be a thing, though.

Is there anything that was in the original Pixie Hollow that you’d like to change in WTP?

Lavender: I would change the whisper noise it made when you got a message, it got a bit annoying. And it would be really neat if you could choose from a few different songs to have played in your fairy’s home depending on your mood! I had the ice themed house and have heard the music a few too many times!

Teresa: There are things I want to tweak, and fully plan to! We have already added a couple of small new things, such as the second sitting pose and featuring real player’s outfits in the shop catalogue. I hope everyone enjoys them!

The last thing we wanted to talk about is the staff’s personal feelings about WTP and about their jobs, as well as ask them about their inspiration.

Is there anything new that working on WTP has teached you?

Rachel: As an artist here I am definitely learning new technical skills and developing as an artist in general. Some examples of art skills I’ve been able to develop include creating atlases and spritesheets for fairy clothing and hair, getting familiar with DragonBones as I’d never used it for animation, and just gaining more experience in Photoshop. And I basically just learned all these things by trying them out and asking questions if I needed help.

Lavender: Through WTP I’ve learned more about creating sound effects, because when remaking the old sounds for WTP, I really have to think about what each one is made out of (for example, the pouch sound was re-created using a paper bag rustling, leaves crunching, and a bell synth).

How do you feel about the community growing so much in a short amount of time?

Teresa: I really didn’t expect it, and it has been a bit stressful, but I hope we are handling it well. I would never have imagined that a TikTok would be the reason either! Having more eyes on us makes me feel restless. We had to adapt the discord server to keep it safe and make information more accessible to new members.

What do you remember about Pixie Hollow? And did it change your life in any way?

Lavender: I joined right at the beginning, and loved how it really felt like you were stepping into a different, magical world. My favorite thing to do was decorating and creating/collecting items for my house, as well as the minigames and item crafting/ baking, I’m most excited to see these features again! Also, a good memory from the game I have is going to the summer pool party in the ballroom, and playing games in the tearoom with friends! The music in Pixie Hollow was one of my earliest inspirations for pursuing a career in film/game scoring. Currently I am studying for a degree in film/game scoring! I’m obsessed with fantasy games, nature, fairy tales, magic, and mythology, and I write music to try and illustrate the stories and have the listener feel like they’re visiting the scene. You can hear some of my original music on Spotify under the name June Westfield!

Rachel: I was so young that I have trouble remembering everything. I do remember sometimes getting on the phone with my friends and talking as we played together and explored meadows, which was really fun. I also really enjoyed completing tasks and playing the minigames. I have no idea why that was so fun to me, but I just liked getting achievements and beating my scores.

Do you feel like some people may have unrealistic expectations for WTP? And do you think it can ever be as big as Pixie Hollow was?

Teresa: Yes, but I can’t blame them. So far I am the only developer to have actually worked on this game, so it’s a lot of pressure, but of course the players can’t know that. For some reason the things that everyone thinks will be the easiest to code are always the more difficult ones, funnily enough. For example, a flying mechanic like the original game is sort of complex, whereas adding new meadows is extremely simple. Do I think WTP will ever be as big as PH? Definitely not. Pixie Hollow had millions of players, Disney advertised it, and it had a full development team behind it. A lot of the original players will have moved on. I’m actually surprised that so many people have found us already!

Are there any artists that you look up to or are inspired by?

Rachel: I don’t have anyone specific in mind who I look up to, but I do watch a lot of cartoons and really admire animation and all of the work that goes into it. I get really inspired seeing different animated works and am super impressed by the entire process of it.

Ci: I used to actively make art outside of WTP and definitely had a whole list of people whose styles I looked up to, but now that I’ve moved away from that I mostly remember individual pieces. I had to dig some up for this question! loish, gawki, and Hethe Srodawa, are a few.

Lavender: Some composers that inspire me are Enya, Faun, Loreena McKennitt, and Secret Garden. They are all fantasy/new age genre artists that create enchanting music!

The WTP community is a great place to make friends! Is there a person in the staff that you’ve formed a strong friendship with?

Rachel: I’ve definitely become a lot closer with many of the staff members, whether it be looking up to certain people like our team leads, chatting with the other artists in DMs and helping each other out, or just having fun conversations with all the other staff members and sharing funny stories and pictures.

Teresa: Asteria is probably the best friend I’ve made at WTP, as we have talked the most. I have also met Kass in real life – she’s the sweetest! I love everyone on our team.

(Kass is one of our moderators - we’ll hear from her in the final interview post!)

And finally, What does working on a game that’s so loved by people mean to you?

Teresa: It is so heartwarming to be a part of something that brings people joy and makes them nostalgic. Pixie Hollow’s fan base can make me a bit anxious at times. Sometimes a group of players will want one thing, and then another group wants the exact opposite and it can be hard to make a choice. There’s a lot of pressure in trying to stay true to the original game’s vision while also being fresh, but it drives me to deliver the best work I can. I put a lot of time into WTP, and have actually burnt out a few times already. Luckily, I love building things so much that it never lasts long.

________________

Next up in our interview series - our social media team and server moderators! Stay tuned to hear their answers to some of your questions.

#WTP Staff Interviews #we the pixies

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loreweaver-universe · 4 years

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And that’s the episode.

That was really good. Easily the best episode of the show thus far. We really got to dig in to Adora and Catra’s relationship, really got to see what makes Catra tick, and we got to see her really come into her own confidence and, on the surface of things, finally leave Adora behind.

The promise is fully broken now, from both sides. I don’t know that there will be any more saving each other, any more going easy on each other. They’ve chosen their sides completely now. Well, Catra has, I’m not sure how Adora’s going to react to this from here on.

Promise comes in at my new #1 for the series, displacing In the Shadows of Mystacor easily. That was really good. I wonder how soon it will be topped? There’s two episodes left in the season, and we’re coming to a climax, so...we’ll see if it happens immediately.

Up next for the liveblog, I’ll be resuming Steven Universe Future on Monday, and will be doing the final four episodes all in a row. We’re almost done with Steven Universe--for good, this time. Wow.

Up next for streaming, I’m going to stream some more DOOM Eternal today! I think I’m coming up on the ending, but we’ll see. If I finish that today, I’ll be continuing Nier next; if not, there’s at least one more DOOM stream coming. You can check out my Twitch channel to watch me live by clicking here, or if you’d like to see all the DOOM streams I’ve done, click here.

I’ll see you guys for whatever you decide to check out for next! Thank you for tuning in!

IN OTHER NEWS:

I recently completed my playthrough of the second story campaign in Fire Emblem: Three Houses! You can view all the streams of the Golden Deer and Black Eagles routes I have done by clicking here!

I recently completed a blind playthrough of Hollow Knight on Twitch! You can watch all the Hollow Knight streams I’ve uploaded to Youtube by clicking here!

If you’d like to help me pay my rent, buy me some food, or help with my bills and medicine, please use my direct donation link! If you’d like to support me per liveblog completed every month, please pledge to my Patreon! Becoming a patron not only allows you to vote on what shows I do whenever I choose a new one, but also grants access to the community Minecraft server to $5 patrons or higher!

You should also go pledge to Gio’s Patreon–our Discord server maintenance tech, creator of Rubybot, and community Minecraft server overlord deserves far more than I can afford to pledge to him by myself.

If you’d like more of me and my content:

My Episode Lists master page, where you can find every show and liveblog I’ve done!

My Discord server, where you can come hang out with me and other fans, check out member liveblogs, and join community gaming guilds!

My Twitch channel, where I stream variety games every so often!

My Youtube channel, where you can check out past streams!

My ask blog, where you can send me questions and comments!

My Twitter, where I make announcements about liveblogs and streams!

It’s your kindness and support that lets me do this stuff, and I wouldn’t be where I am without all of you to do it for. Thank you all so much for your support, and for tuning in every episode!

OTHER PEOPLE YOU MAY ENJOY:

I may have been one of the earlier Steven Universe liveblogs, but a whole community of livebloggers has sprung up over the last five years! I linked to a bunch individually for a few wrap-ups, but honestly, this end-slate is already eight billion miles long, so I’m just gonna link to my links page. Click here if you want recommendations of other livebloggers, or other neat people, or webcomics and podcasts that I recommend.

#she ra #she ra and the princesses of power #shebloggin #bloggin #shera22 #she ra episode 11 #episode wrap up

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anettrolikova · 3 years

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Disney’s brand new direct-to-consumer platform acquired 30MM subscribers.

Disney has many of the franchises that best lend themselves to this model. Many of those they don’t own, such as Harry Potter, have their rights fragmented.

Disney’s Parks & Attractions segment generates nearly 100% more revenue and 60% more profit than Disney’s studio division (which already generates nearly three times the revenue AND three times the gross margins as its primary competitors). By turning hit films into theme park attractions, not only does Disney generate more “upside” from a hit than its competitors do, Disney’s breakeven point for these films is also much lower.

There is nothing that can compare to the impact of a child being hugged by her heroes. The ability to enjoy your favorite IP as “you” is unique and lasts a lifetime. Consider, for example, how many families have Disneyland photos of their kids with Mickey or Woody on the fridge.

because of real estate scarcity, lengthy build times, enormous capital requirements (exacerbated by Baumol’s Cost Disease), Disney’s theme parks, resorts, and cruises are incredibly difficult to replicate by another Western media company

It is incredibly profitable and will continue to grow as new mobile technology/personalization enhance the park-going experience. The barriers to replication are incredibly high and span both fixed investment (land and infrastructure) and skillset (e.g. design and boots-on-the-ground operations).

“Disneyland is an experience involving many moving parts in harmony, like an orchestra. Everything has to be tuned, what you hear, what you smell, what you see, how you see it, the speed at which you assimilate all of that, just like a film, is choreographed. But how do you choreograph that if you don't control the camera, because the camera is you — it's you when you come to Disneyland".

Games have been on the cusp of these experiences for years, but in 2020, they’re well under way. These are “games” like Minecraft, Fortnite, Roblox, to a lesser extent GTA Online, and Pokémon Go.

These titles offer many unique advantages compared to their analogue analogues. For example, they are always “open”, “everywhere”, “full of your friends”, and impervious to COVID-19. These games also boast an even larger (i.e. infinite) number of attractions and rides, none of which need be bound by the laws of physics or the need for physical safety, and all of which can be rapidly updated and personalized.

The durability and scalability of these experiences are connected to why they’re so hard to define. To consider them a “game” is to consider iOS a phone, or Disneyland a specific Pirates of the Caribbean roller coaster.

these parks were designed to (or have since been converted to) allow for anyone to be an “Imagineer”. The developers of these titles aren’t trying to make a “game” but a “game engine” that allows everyone to create and share their own attraction.

nearly every game that could be recreated in Minecraft has been (e.g. Metroid). Corporations have built in-game cellphones capable of making live video calls to the real world using real world physics, users have built enormous explorable worlds based on existing IP (e.g. Game of Thrones' King's Landing, which is the size of Los Angeles) and new ones (one player spent 16 hours a day for a year building a 370 million block cyberpunk city).

In this sense, these “digital theme parks” are really “digital theme park platforms”. Last year, Roblox paid out $100MM to developers (i.e. 1-20 person teams) against more than $500MM in UGC-based revenue. And in September, the company launched a “Marketplace” that allows developers to monetize not just their games, but also any assets, plug-ins, vehicles, 3D models, terrains, and items they made for it. This means developers can both reduce the time/effort required to create on Roblox, and receive additional revenue from the time/effort they invest.

the billions of hours American children spent imagining and acting out the adventures of Luke Skywalker and the Jedi with the 1970s and 1980s with figurines, robes, and lightsabers. However, this expansive imagination was forever trapped in brainwaves, backyards, and basements. It was hard enough to share these imaginary stories and world with close, in-person friends, let alone to faraway and unknown ones.

Today, it’s possible for the average fan to actually translate their imagination into a real, virtual space and then share it and play in it with their friends and world at large. And not only is it cool to do so, there are many companies designed around facilitating, promoting, and financially rewarding this behavior

most people don’t need or want to “make” a website or app. Billions, however, do dream of fictional worlds and wish they could share them with their friends. Just as tens of millions spent decades wishing they could build their own Super Mario levels — and now millions do via Super Mario Maker, which is one of the ten best-selling “games” on the Nintendo Switch.

Nearly every one of the underlying drivers behind these digital theme park platforms is growing: (1) their user bases; (2) the per user engagement; (3) the number and diversity of the experiences created by the community; (4) the ease with which a “player” can discover and jump from one experience to another; (5) the ease of creating an experience; (6) the technical and experiential capabilities of these engines/tools/experiences; (7) the ease and extent to which you can monetization individual creations (from individual assets to games); and (8) the importance of virtual worlds to the overall future of the Internet.

these digital theme park platforms own the overall customer relationship, billing, and all engagement data. But the core game engines are the most defensible; like the land and physical infrastructure of a park, they are built up over decades and impossible to fully short-cut. This includes not just enormous codebases, but years of enhancements to the end-to-end platform (e.g. core tech, tutorials, UI/X, community services) based on billions of hours of developer and consumer-side usage.

It’s likely that soon we’ll see D2C consumer product companies begin building their own bespoke experiences inside digital theme park platforms; the age of growth-hacking via referral codes, native podcast ads, SEO, and social is over.

The good news is more digital theme park platforms are likely to emerge.

although a new digital theme park platform is inevitable, the odds are low, the total opportunities are few, and the timelines long. In addition, it’s unclear how many platforms for UGC world creation are needed — just as most creators and consumers rely only YouTube or Twitch. Runners-up exist but are much, much smaller.

Disney could have ended up with one of these platforms with its multi-franchise “open world” sandbox-style video game, “Disney Infinity”. The game first released in 2013, received widespread acclaim, and generated a reported $200-300MM in revenue over the first three years. Despite this topline, the game’s performance nevertheless fell short of Disney’s $1B internal target and, with that in mind, presumably well short of breakeven, too. It was cancelled in 2016.

At Disneyland, attractions don’t open until they’re both complete, “perfect”, and predictable. There’s no real test, learn, change, repeat approach — especially compared to live, public experiments such as the Fortnite blackout. Hugs must be perfectly executed.

Every IP owner will need to figure out how to participate in digital theme parks and platforms — to figure out how to execute a digital version of the physical “hug”. This is especially true for those that don’t even have physical theme parks and for which the alternative — building one — would take more than a decade and $20B+ in capital.

“Detail level one is when you are standing out in the countryside and see the church steeple sticking up above the trees. Detail level two is when you enter town and are looking down the street. You can see the street, the median, the parkway strips, sidewalks, and trees. Detail level three is when you are standing on the sidewalk looking at one of the houses. You can see the character of the house, walls, roof, windows, trim, and doors. Detail level four is when you have actually walked up to the front door, grabbed the door knocker, see its detail, finish, and feel its temperature and weight as you knock on the door… most architects are pretty good at getting to level three, but here at Disney we must always get to the detail level four so we can maintain our immersive environments that our stories create”.

It is easy to say, “we can’t do it”, “we’ve tried and failed”, or “what even is the roadmap here”. These are fair and important rejoinders. However, as the “Imagineering Story” frequently reiterates, nobody at Disney had built a theme park, or had any relevant experience (other than narrative) before Walt insisted they do it. And it was messy, and uncertain, and chaotic, with the business folks (which I say with love as I am one) who were terrified of the cost, skeptical of the demand and long-term interest, and rattled by the lack of a clear business case. Note, too, that today’s leading platforms will, themselves admit they hardly know what they’re doing — and how can they? But of course, it helps when you can grow by letting your most imaginative and obsessive fans chip in.

#essay #long read #disney #disney parks #disney pixar #metaverse #future #vision #digital #theme park #mattball

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splendidlyimperfect · 4 years

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Sting’s entire life changed when he was eleven years old and his best friend Rogue told a secret that he’d promised to keep. Taken away from the father who abused him and the best friend who’d tried to save him, Sting tried to start a new life with his uncle. But the trauma wasn’t easy to escape, and eventually Sting turned to drinking to forget the things that hurt.

Now he’s an adult, and he hasn’t been sober in years. But when drinking nearly kills him and a near-stranger saves his life, Sting has a chance to turn his life around, and maybe become the man that Rogue deserves to love.

Chapter Summary: Sting and Rogue's relationship progresses, and Natsu makes an important discovery.

Chapters (17/?): 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Rogue Cheney/Sting Eucliffe, Natsu Dragneel/Gray Fullbuster, Natsu Dragneel & Sting Eucliffe, Sting Eucliffe & Weisslogia Additional Tags: modern au, childhood friends, angst, emotional hurt/comfort, angst with a happy ending, child abuse, alcoholism, drug use, recovery

**A/N: In light of the protests and the horrific actions of the police – currently and historically – I wanted to take the time to comment on the impact of those events on this story. First of all, I wholeheartedly support Black Lives Matter and ALL of the protests, including (and especially) defunding the police. Cops are bastards who use their power to hurt, oppress and murder people. It’s a racist institution that needs to be dismantled for so many reasons.

So, why is this story heavily feature the police if I feel that way? Honestly, it wasn’t originally going to. Sting wasn’t supposed to be a major character in how to become a wildfire and he didn’t have a backstory when I started to write him. Then he started to become a source of safety and comfort for Gray; someone he could trust to help if he needed it. It was an ideal – someone who was powerful enough to change things, but kind enough to use that power for good.

Sting’s story here is one of someone using their trauma to help other people. It’s not representative of real life, and I recognize that this isn’t the kind of relationship that police have with people. It’s not the kind of relationship that I’ve had with the police either. It’s wishful thinking.

I had considered not finishing the story, but it’s important to me, so I’ve decided on this, instead. I’m going to continue to follow the plot of how to become a wildfire, and then Sting’s going to make some different decisions that will involve him leaving the police force and focusing on working with people and trauma instead. In addition, for each remaining chapter, I’m going to donate $20 to Black Lives Matter.**

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home \ ˈhōm noun : a familiar or usual setting: congenial environment also : the focus of one's domestic attention

xvii winter age twenty-four

Sting proposes to Rogue completely by accident.

“I can’t believe it’s been five years.” Sting stares down at the sobriety chip in his hand, running his thumb over the raised ‘V.’ They’re sitting up in the tree house in Rogue’s parent’s back yard, wrapped in a blanket to stave off the chilly winter air.

“You’ve come so far,” Rogue says, kissing Sting’s cheek and shuffling closer to him. Sting returns the kiss, then looks out across the yard toward the house. The lights are off – it’s just past midnight – but Sting remembers the view from when he’d slept up here as a little kid. He’d stay hidden, watching Rogue’s mom kiss his forehead and Rogue’s dad help him with homework, wondering why his dad didn’t love him the same way.

Continue reading on AO3

The memories ache. It’s worse than usual today, tugging at his stomach and making him feel untethered, and he grips the sobriety chip a little harder. Then Rogue’s hand closes around his and he runs his thumb gently across Sting’s wrist.

Sting exhales, turning his hand and sliding their fingers together so that the coin is pressed between their palms like a promise. Rogue leans in and kisses Sting’s nose, and the memories of being lost and lonely are replaced with a quiet, gentle affection.

“I love you,” Rogue says softly. “And I’m so proud of you.” He leans back and gazes at Sting, lips curved up in the smile that Sting’s loved for so long. It’s the same smile he’d give Sting when they were little – when he’d pop his head over the edge of the tree fort, dragging up a bag of snacks and making Sting feel safe.

“I love you, too.” Sting reaches out and tucks a wayward strand of hair behind Rogue’s ear. “Thank you.”

Rogue shakes his head, turning and pressing a kiss to Sting’s palm. “You did all the work,” he insists.

Sting shakes his head. “No, for…” He tips his head back to stare at the constellations through the roof of the tree fort. He feels six and eight and eleven and twenty-four all at the same time, and all of those versions of him are deeply, desperately in love with Rogue. “For being my home.”

Rogue kisses Sting’s hand again. “Always,” he says. The moonlight plays off his hair and casts shadows across his face, and his lips are warm, pressing against the flutter of Sting’s pulse in his wrist.

They sit in silence for a little bit, watching soft flakes of snow drift down to the ground and melt almost instantly.

“It’s weird,” Rogue says after a while. “Thinking about someone else living here.”

Sting nods. He can just see the edge of the ‘FOR SALE’ sign in the front yard, put up three days ago when Rogue’s mom had told him they were moving to a smaller house. The idea of someone else sitting in Rogue’s old room, someone else’s kids playing in the yard, someone else drawing on the driveway with chalk... it makes Sting feel empty, somehow.

“I wish...” Rogue sighs, voice trailing off as a puff of white into the night air. Sting tips his head, studying the expression on Rogue’s face. His brow is drawn, the same as when he’s doing the crossword in the mornings before he asks Sting what an eleven-letter word for ‘destiny’ is. His hand is warm, thumb tapping out an absent rhythm against the back of Sting’s fingers, and he kicks his legs in time to the beat.

“What?” Rogue asks, looking over at him, and Sting is suddenly hit by all of his memories of Rogue’s smile.

Five years old and hiding in the playground together, grinning at each other and digging in the sand.

Seven years old and kissing Rogue’s cheek while he holds a bouquet of dandelions Sting picked for him.

Nine years old, cuddled under a blanket and giggling while reading ‘Hardy Boys’ books with a flashlight.

Eleven years old and lying up in the fort, listening to music and wishing they could be together forever.

“Marry me.” The words tumble out before Sting can think about them and he watches Rogue’s eyes go wide. “Marry me, and we’ll buy the house from your parents. We can live here.” Sting can feel his hand shaking in Rogue’s and he can barely breathe, but it feels so right. “We’ll get all the Pokémon games, and we can buy ice cream all the time, just like we promised. Remember?”

Rogue nods slowly, expression somewhere between stunned and ecstatic, and Sting can feel himself starting to cry, even though the smile that’s creeping across his face. “Marry me,” he says again, softer this time. “We’ll make a home here. And maybe…” He takes a deep breath. “Maybe our kids can play here, someday. Just like us.”

“Sting,” Rogue breathes, and then they’re kissing desperately as the snow falls around them. Sting’s hand finds its way into Rogue’s hair and he pulls Rogue closer.

“I love you,” he whispers, a promise against Rogue’s lips. “Marry me?”

“Yes,” Rogue says, laughing wetly as he presses their foreheads together. “Yes. You’re my favorite person.”

Sting holds Rogue tight, not bothering to wipe away the tears, and whispers, “You’re my favorite person, too.”

Natsu cries when Sting asks him to be the best man.

“I thought I was the one who cried at everything,” Sting teases as Natsu wipes his face with his sleeve. The picture on the computer screen is a bit blurry, but it’s better than a phone call.

“Shut up,” Natsu grumbles. “I’m allowed to have feelings, too, asshole.”

Sting laughs, swallowing down the lump in his own throat and blinking to keep back the tears. “So, is that a yes?” he asks.

“Of course.” Natsu looks up at him with wet eyes and a bright smile. “When’s the wedding?”

“We’re, um... not sure yet.” Sting leans back in his chair as Lector pads into the room and hops up on his lap. “I kinda proposed by accident.”

“How the hell did you manage that?” Natsu asks, laughing, then shakes his head. “Why don’t you tell me in person – I’m gonna be in town next weekend for Laxus’ bachelor party.”

Sting nods. He’d gotten the invitation as well – a simple text with a date, time, and the address of a nearby bar. It’s been sitting on his phone for nearly a week, unanswered.

“You don’t have to come,” Natsu says gently. “He’ll understand. We can have brunch or something together later.”

Sting reaches into his pocket and fiddles with the chip there. He’s been around alcohol since getting sober – Rogue’s parents have a drink of wine with dinner occasionally, or Rufus will get a beer when they’re out for lunch. This is different, though, and Sting has grown enough now to know that he can’t handle it.

“Brunch sounds good,” he says, looking back up at Natsu and smiling. “Text me when you’re here and we’ll figure something out.”

It’s nearly two o’clock on Sunday morning when Sting’s phone goes off. He groans, rubbing his face and reaching out blindly for the side table to grab it. Natsu’s name flashes on the screen and Sting sighs.

“I meant in the actual morning, dumbass,” he grumbles, moving to turn the ringer off. Then the words under Natsu’s name register and he’s suddenly wide awake.

Ellie is here.

Sting pushes himself up on one elbow, blinking the sleep from his eyes and opening the message. A blurry photo is attached to it of a young guy with short, black hair, leaning against the bar with a drink in his hand.

He’s here, Natsu’s message says. I found him.

#fairy tail #stingue #sting eucliffe #rogue cheney #gratsu #natsu dragneel #gray fullbuster #angst #hurt/comfort #angst with a happy ending #recovery #new chapter #update #my fic

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somekindoftuber · 5 years

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vld youtuber AU (klance, part 4)

part one | part two | part three

Compared to the all day insanity of his livestream, Lance’s 23rd birthday is super laid back. Hunk makes the hour drive into Harborville and the three of them hit his favorite pizza joint. It’s not as good as the one back home on Varadero Beach, but it’s a close second. After that they spend the rest of the day in he and Pidge’s living room playing horror games and snuggling together on the couch (let it be known that Hunk is a world class cuddler and his hugs can cure most ailments). He spends an hour on facetime with his family, retreating to his room at one point to talk to his mom and dad alone. He misses them so much, even though he was just there. He comes out of his room sniffling a little and lets Hunk scoop him up like a ragdoll.

Once July is over, Lance finds his schedule suddenly packed. His subscriber count is starting to inch towards twenty five thousand and he has to sit down and process that for a while. It doesn’t seem real. That’s a fourth of the way to a silver creator award - he never dreamed he’d get that far just making weird videos and singing parody songs.

But to what end? Does he want a youtube career? This was just supposed to be a fun hobby. Not that he wants to work at the cafe the rest of his life, but his associate’s degree in social sciences has sort of been going to waste. He might be able to use youtube as a stepping stone into something else.

But what?

He would normally consult Pidge, but she’s slammed with robotics projects and barely has time to hang out at all. Hunk is still online sometimes, but he’s frequently occupied since he finally grew a spine and asked Shay out after pining for her at a distance for almost a year.

Like how you’re pining for Keith, his inner monologue tells him. He shakes his head to shut it up. Besides, Lance has only been pining for what, four, maybe five months? Not nearly as bad.

Speaking of Keith, Lance hasn’t heard much from him since the Livestream. He never responded to Lance’s text thanking him, and he hasn’t played Overwatch in a while. Shiro had recently posted a video where they were finishing up their current bike and Keith had been there (looking amazing and wow is his hair getting long), so Lance knows he’s alive. A weird sense of dread starts gnawing at him, so he sends Keith a DM on twitter.

@LanceyLance to @k_redlion Hey man just checking in, haven’t heard from you in a while, you good? We should play OW soon, I miss my dps partner ;D

He hopes that’s not too forward. While he waits for a reply (and so he doesn’t anxiously check his twitter every two minutes), Lance starts working on the guitar part of a Hozier song he wants to cover, and he’s never been more glad that he took the time to learn how to read and write music. Lance’s channel has been featuring more love songs - for which Pidge and Hunk have collectively nicknamed him Captain Subtlety. But does it matter how not-subtle he is if none of it seems to be getting through to his intended target?

He spends a good two hours practicing and then takes a break, finally letting himself check his twitter. There’s a reply from Keith and Lance almost jumps up from his chair.

@k_redlion to @LanceyLance yeah man sorry just been really busy with work and the garage i’m free this thursday if you want to play

He’s not technically free. He was planning on filming on Thursday since Pidge will be out of the apartment almost all day and he won’t bother her. But for Keith? He’ll make time.

@LanceyLance to @k_redlion Heck yeah man just name a time!!

When they do play on Thursday, Keith isn’t very talkative. He’s always sort of quiet, but he sounds tense today. His words are even more clipped, and it sets Lance on edge. They’re in a queue for a game when Lance decides he can’t take any more.

“Dude,” He asks. “You alright?”

“I’m fine.”

Yeah, right, Lance thinks. But he’s gotta approach this carefully. Keith doesn’t open up easily, he knows that much, and attempting to force it out of him would likely backfire.

“Hey,” he says carefully. “I know we’re not, like, super close, but you can tell me if something’s wrong. I’m actually really good at keeping secrets.”

There’s a bit of silence, then a tiny breath that almost sounds like a laugh. “Like how you told the entire internet that Pidge pukes in the car if she reads anything other than road signs?”

Lance makes an indignant sound. “Oh come on, that’s not a secret! Anyone who’s been in a car with her for five minutes knows she’s has the stomach strength of a toddler!”

Keith laughs then, and it’s such a nice sound, even if it’s short lived. It breaks the tension enough that Lance feels confident about trying again.

“But seriously, Keith. I’m here for you, yeah?” Lance chews on his lip. “I hope that’s okay for me to say.”

There’s a stretch of quiet that has Lance almost breaking out into a sweat. But then he hears Keith huff over the mic. “Yeah,” Keith says, and it sounds like there’s a smile behind it. “Yeah, man. Thanks.”

Lance gets another invite from Shiro.

It’s perfect timing because Pidge is finishing her summer term and is completely fried - something only a trip home will fix. And since she doesn’t have a car, Lance has the perfect excuse to drive her. With his neighbors set to watch his cats, they pile in Lance’s Civic, put on a playlist of Disney songs, and sing for nearly the entire drive. Pidge is damn near loopy after her final exam, but she finished her robotics project and most likely aced it. Like she does every exam. Lance doubts she’s ever seen anything lower than an A- on anything.

The Holts are just as chipper as always, even if Pidge collapses face-first into her father as soon as she steps through the door. He just pats her head and laughs. Lance brings their stuff inside so Pidge can take a much needed nap, then shoots a text to Shiro letting him know they got in okay. They’re not set to film for another two days, but maybe he can sneak some hang-out time in there. Until then, everyone under the Holt family roof is on Pidge pampering duty.

Filming day comes and Lance brings a cake for them all to share. He pulls up to the house and parks on the street, noting that the house garage is open. Keith is inside, bent over a motorcycle and surrounded by parts and tools, looking so focused that he doesn’t seem to notice Lance approaching. He’s wearing a tank top and sweats and is covered in grease, but he still looks good, so Lance doesn’t say anything for a second and admires the view. Keith’s phone is perched on a toolbox nearby, playing music - Massive Attack. Of course he would listen to Massive Attack.

Keith finally notices him and stiffens, turning. With the cake in his arms, Lance can’t really wave, so he just shrugs and smiles. Keith eyes him up and down for a second before pointing to the door inside the garage.

“Head on in, Shiro’s in the kitchen.”

When he gets inside, Shiro stands from the kitchen table to take the cake from Lance and pull him into a hug. Lance thinks he’ll never get used to that. Keith wanders in a minute later and goes straight for the back of the house to shower and change.

Shiro looks to be in good health, as does Keith, though he’s not really meeting Lance’s eyes. Did he do something wrong? They drive to Shiro’s rented garage a few miles away and shoot for almost five hours, switching camera duty between the three of them. They get a hilarious outtake when Lance drops a socket wrench and juggles it spectacularly before it falls to the floor and bounces at least a dozen times - like something out of a cartoon. It sets them all laughing.

Once they’re done filming, Shiro locks up the garage and they head home. Then it’s time for dinner, barbecue again, but Lance isn’t complaining. He gets put on corn and potato detail while Shiro gets the grill going. Keith still isn’t being very talkative. He doesn’t seem to be actively avoiding Lance, but he thought they’d gotten to a point where they could chat candidly.

Kosmo provides a nice distraction while they eat, giving both Lance and Keith something else to focus on. As the sun sets, Lance could swear that Shiro is giving him a weird look.

“So,” Shiro begins. “Pidge is almost done with school, right?”

Lance nods. “Yep. Finishing almost a year early, even. Not that I’d expect any less from her.”

Shiro picks at a slice of pork loin. “What is she going to do next?”

Lance pouts, then shrugs. “Dunno. She’s got her eye on Boston Dynamics, and I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if they welcome her with a red carpet. Have you seen her thesis? I can’t even pronounce half the title.”

Shiro laughs. “Yeah, she’s a Holt alright. Geniuses, the whole family.” There’s a pause. “And what about you, Lance?”

Oof. That sure is a topic. Lance leans back in his lawn chair and finishes his beer. “Beats me. I stayed in Harborville after school because Pidge wanted a roommate, but I don’t really have anything else going for me there.” He picks at a loose thread on his jeans. “I can sort of work from anywhere? Dunno if I want to stay in a college town.”

Shiro nods with a smile, then glances at his phone. “I’ll be back in a bit,” he says, then ducks back into the house, closing the sliding glass door behind him.

Now it’s just Lance and Keith.

And Keith is giving him A Look. He’s not sure what to make of it, his thick eyebrows pinched over his nose like Lance just grew a second head.

“Uh,” Lance says. “Something wrong?”

Keith opens and closes his mouth several times, then is suddenly very interested in his plate. “You wouldn’t go with her?” He asks.

Lance raises an eyebrow. “Pidge? I mean, I could, I guess...? But I doubt she’d really need me. That woman is going places, y’know? She’s probably pretty eager to be on her own for the first time, especially after living with me for three years.” He laughs a little. “Though I won’t be surprised if she attempts to take one of my cats. Motoko always did like her more than me.”

Keith looks up at Lance and he looks so confused. Adorably confused. “Uh.”

Lance studies him. “Yeah…?”

Keith is chewing on the inside of his cheek a little. “Isn’t -- isn’t Pidge your girlfriend?”

Lance would have choked if he wasn’t so used to that question. “Haha, oh man, no.” He reaches for another beer from the ice chest. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love Pidge and would take a bullet for her any day of the week, but she’s like a sister to me.”

Surprise is slowly dawning on Keith’s face. “Oh.” Then he starts blushing.

“Hey man, don’t sweat it,” Lance assures him. “Pretty much everyone thinks we’re an item. No one believes a guy and a girl can live together and not be dating.”

Keith looks so uncomfortable, his face and ears red. “Sorry. I thought - and then in your livestream you said you weren’t single, so…”

“Huh? When did--” But then Lance remembers his line about his heart being spoken for and now he’s blushing too. “Oh, right. Nah, I just tell that to fans, in case anyone tries to get too close. Which some have. It saves me a lot of headache to just pretend I’m seeing someone.”

He swears Keith’s eyes are glittering. “So you’re…?”

Lance nods. “Yep, completely unattached.”

“Oh.”

There’s a long stretch of quiet that has Lance fidgeting as Keith keeps looking up at him from behind his bangs. He thought Lance was taken? Is that why he’s been awkward? Or is Lance reading too much into this yet again? He shouldn’t say anything, he should keep his mouth shut and wait for Keith --

Shiro picks the perfect moment to return to the back patio and rescue him. They chat for another hour and Keith has visibly loosened up, laughing loudly at Lance’s jokes and stories. When he says goodnight to make the short drive to the Holt home, Keith smiles wide at him, and it takes Lance’s breath away.

They only stay in town for another two days, and Lance spends more time with the Holts. On their way out, they swing by Shiro’s to say goodbye. Keith still doesn’t hug him, but he grips Lance’s hand tight and holds his gaze with those crazy intense eyes of his.

Pidge naps for most of the drive so Lance puts on one of his favorite mixes and hums along.

They have another two weeks before Pidge starts her last term of undergrad, so Lance throws himself into YouTube. The filming he did at Shiro’s was enough for three episodes, and thankfully one of them includes Lance dropping the socket wrench. He can’t even be embarrassed when he sees Shiro laughing in the footage.

He spends three days recording before finally posting his newest cover - “Like Real People Do.” He worked really hard on this one, recording several tracks to mix together and several camera angles. Lance splices it all together in his editing software to make a little music video, and, as a last touch, puts it all in black and white. He posts it and crosses his fingers, making an announcement tweet about it.

Keith likes that tweet and Lance melts into the couch.

Pidge rolls her eyes from the other couch, looking up from the giant book she considered ‘light reading.’ Lance had told her the tale of Keith thinking he was dating her, and Pidge took on her classic Resting Bitch Face in response.

“I’d say you’re like a lovesick puppy, but I feel like even they wouldn’t be this bad.”

Lance doesn’t even look up. “Let me have this.”

Pidge huffs and makes a vague gesture with her hands. “Lance. For the love of all that is sacred, please get your shit together and ask him out already.”

But Lance pouts. “But what if I’m seeing this all wrong?” he toys with his phone a little. “He’s super withdrawn and I haven’t known him for very long. What if this is just how he acts when he finally trusts someone? He hasn’t exactly flirted with me or anything.”

Pidge turns a page in her book. “Won’t know until you try.”

Sinking further into the couch, Lance sets his phone aside and continues pouting until it’s time to make dinner.

After he disappears into the kitchen and Pidge starts hearing the rattle of pots and pans, she takes out her phone and opens the text app.

(+328) shiro this is pidge. i need to talk to you

(+770) Hi Pidge! Everything okay?

(+328) in the grand scheme of things yes. i am however about to either lose my mind or commit homicide against my roommate

(+770) Lance?

(+328) shiro. listen. lance is hopelessly in love with your brother and if i have to put up with his pining for my last term i might flunk out from sheer frustration

(+328) he refuses to ask keith out because he’s convinced that he’s misreading it and keith isn’t interested. please tell me hes wrong

(+770) Oh wow

(+770) ahahaha

(+770) Oh my god, this is hilarious.

(+770) Keith is completely smitten with Lance, but won’t do anything about it for the same reason.

(+328) oh my god

(+328) theyre perfect for each other

(+770) Yep.

(+328) but i think it’s time for an intervention

(+328) before i do something ill regret

(+770) I agree. Any ideas?

(+328) yes actually

Continued in part 5 here!

#text #youtuber au #klance

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castercasino967 · 3 years

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scourgewins · 4 years

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(Sorry I haven’t posted anything in awhile! I keep getting ideas for new stories, halfway finishing them, then starting another, then halfway finishing it, and I think you get the picture. Anyway, I wanted to write something for the holiday season that introduced some headcanons of ours. Be warned, there’s a lot of talk of religion in here and some mentions of antisemitism, along with some satanic stuff. Nothing too specific is mentioned, but if your sensitive to these sort of things you’d best not read this. This is meant to be a sort of fluffy piece, but it gets a bit serious at points. I’m really nervous about this story! I hope you like it if you feel comfortable reading it!)

(Warnings: Mentions of religion, mentions of satanism, mentions of antisemitism (none of it is too explicit))

Thunk… Thunk… Thunk...

Bendy frowned, pulling his blanket closer around himself.

Thunk… Thunk… Thunk...

He cracked one pie eye open and stared blearily about his surroundings.

Thunk… Thunk… Thunk...

Sighing, Bendy sat up and banged the wall, “Quit it, willya? I’m tryna sleep!”

The noise abruptly stopped, then the door handle twisted and Wally poked his head inside Joey’s office, a hammer in hand. He caught sight of Bendy in his makeshift bed in the corner, “Whoops! Sorry, Bendy! I’m just putting up Christmas decorations!”

Bendy’s glare turned confused, “Chris-what?”

“Christmas! You know, jingle bells and all that.”

When Bendy looked still more confused, it was Wally’s turn to frown.

“Didn’t Joey ever explain Christmas to you?”

“No,” Bendy considered, “But he did say we put up decorations for birthdays. Is it a birthday?”

“No- Well actually, yeah, it is.” Wally looked to be thinking intensely, “It’s gotta do with religion, I think.”

The little devil tilted his head, “What’s that?”

“It’s… Well, it’s… what you believe in.” Wally nodded succinctly, seeming to enjoy that for once he knew more than someone else.

“What does Christmas believe in?” Bendy leaned forward, his irritation at being woken up dissipating.

“Well, people who celebrate Christmas believe in-”

Suddenly someone was screaming in the hallway outside the door. Wally glanced back outside in alarm.

“Joey? What’s-”

“Don’t say anything!” Joey streaked into the room, his wild green eyes fixating on Bendy. He fell to his knees and held the living cartoon by the shoulders, looking him over.

“Are you okay, Bendy?” Bendy was surprised by his creator’s panic.

“I’m fine, Joey! What’s wrong?”

Joey let out a relieved sigh and slumped against the wall, “I should have warned everyone earlier…”

“Warned us about what?”

Joey’s gaze flicked to Wally and he glared, “You can’t talk about that stuff around Bendy!”

Wally looked both chastened and puzzled, “Sorry! I didn’t know… whatever I said was bad.”

Bendy heard more footsteps running down the hallway and looked up to see Henry burst in.

“Is everything alright? Why were you screaming?”

“He,” Joey pointed accusingly at the janitor, “Was about to tell Bendy about religious stuff.”

Henry’s eyes widened, “Oh.”

Bendy was becoming increasingly annoyed, “What is religion?!”

Sighing, Henry came to sit beside Joey and Bendy, “It’s not something we can talk about with you. You’re… uh…”

Joey helped out, “You were created with powers very opposite of certain religions, so we can’t talk about them with you or you might, well, burst into flames or something.”

“What?!” Bendy and Wally cried at the same time.

“But you can still celebrate the commercial side!” Joey added in an effort to calm them, “You can still put up tinsel and eat snowman cookies-”

“Wally almost killed me!” Bendy screamed, ignoring Joey.

“I didn’t know!” Wally suddenly looked like he was going to cry.

Henry hastened to intervene, “We should have warned both of you earlier! We didn’t know Wally was going to start putting up decorations today.”

“But I told Joey yesterday!” Wally said.

Joey frowned, “No, you didn’t!”

“I asked you and you said ‘Go ahead’!”

“Well I wasn’t paying attention, so you can’t blame me for that!”

“Everyone calm down!” Henry held up placating hands, “The important thing is Bendy is safe. We should inform everyone not to talk about the religious aspect of Christmas or any religious stuff in general in the studio.”

“I can do it!” Wally held up an eager hand, clearly wanting to get back on their good side. He raced out of the room, nearly careening into the doorway.

Henry sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. Bendy looked up at him, clutching his blankets for comfort.

“Sorry, Bendy.” the animator said, moving closer to wrap an arm around him, “We should have been more careful.”

“Yeah…” Joey agreed.

Bendy looked at both of his dads and tried for a nonchalant shrug, “It’s okay, I guess. I didn’t burn up or anything.”

Henry shivered, “Thank goodness.”

Bendy was silent for awhile, enjoying the attention, letting it sooth him. Henry and Joey seemed reluctant to leave his side, seeing as how last time they weren’t there Bendy had nearly went up in smoke.

The cartoon demon decided the silence had gone on long enough, “Can I help with the decorations?”

“Of course!” Joey exclaimed, “We aren’t putting any religious ones up. You can help with the wreaths and mistletoe and such.”

Bendy nodded, pretending to know what those were. A thought struck him as he sat there.

“Do you guys have religion?”

Joey shrugged, “I have satanism.”

Henry looked balefully at Joey, “I don’t think it’s quite that extreme.”

“Call it what you will, I like summoning things.” Joey gestured to Bendy as proof.

The animator shook his head and turned back to Bendy, “I have a religion, I guess, though I don’t practice it as avidly as I used to.”

“What is it?”

Henry hesitated, not sure how much he could say, “It doesn’t involve Christmas. I actually celebrate another holiday around this time of year.”

“Are we putting decorations for that up?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

“It’s not quite as popular as Christmas,” Henry said, “And there aren’t as many decorations.”

“Why’s it not as popular as Christmas?”

“Um, well...” He shared a glance with Joey, “People don’t like it as much.”

“But it’s all religion, right, even if it’s not Christmas.”

“Yes, but some religions don’t mix well with others.”

Bendy stared in awe, “Will you burst into flames, too?”

Henry gave a tight smile, “Not quite.”

Now Bendy was confused, “But religion is what you believe in, right? And since you’re a good person, what you believe in has to be good, too. So why would anyone not like what you believe in?”

“That’s a very loaded question, Bendy,” Henry replied, “But your line of thinking is very refreshing.”

Bendy didn’t understand what that meant and didn’t comment.

“I’m gonna go help Wally decorate.” he decided. Joey brightened.

“Great! Maybe I’ll join you two after I take care of some things.” Joey stood up and lifted Bendy from his bed. Bendy protested the action though secretly enjoyed being held. It made him feel tall, despite the fact that Joey was very short.

Joey set him down and walked over to his desk as Henry began to get to his feet. Bendy held his hand out.

“Need a hand, old man?” he grinned.

Henry chuckled, “Sure.”

He grasped Bendy’s gloved hand and was immediately yanked to his feet by the cartoon’s surprising strength.

“I always forget about that.” Henry said, adjusting his tie.

“Come on!” Bendy led him out, “We can both help Wally! And afterwards maybe I can come to your house so we can decorate for your holiday, too!”

“I don’t really have any decorations.”

“Oh, well, whatever you do have we can do that.”

Henry smiled, suddenly much brighter than he’d been a few seconds ago.

They found Wally setting up mistletoe in the front hallway. Henry helped hold his ladder steady, though the janitor still managed to fall and landed right into Bendy’s outstretched arms. The three continued to help decorate until Henry had to get back to work. Later, Henry and Bendy - joined by Boris and Alice, who also wanted to come - would drive to Henry’s house under the cover of night. Henry would rummage in his closet until he found a small, cylindrical item with a pointed end that allowed it to spin, then take some pennies and nickels from a drawer. The four of them would gather around his small kitchen table and begin a game.

Only Henry could touch the spinning item, though, so the cartoons wouldn’t get burned.

#Bendy and the Ink Machine #BATIM #Bendy the Dancing Demon #Henry Stein #Joey Drew #Wally Franks #Writing Entity #TW Religion #TW Antisemitism Mention #TW Satanism

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thisweekingundamwing · 4 years

Text

This Week in Gundam Wing 24-30 November 2019

Here’s this week’s roundup!

Remember to give your content creators some love! And join in on the events at the bottom!

(Looking forward to all the Unorthodox Undercover Work Mini Bang entries going up this next week!)

~Mod Hel

Fanfiction/Snippets/AU Ideas:

@bobo-is-tha-bomb

Encounters with Heero (Ch. 12 & 13) https://archiveofourown.org/works/21385951/chapters/51360610

F/M, Heero Yuy/Reader

Heero Yuy, Reader, Relena Peacecraft, Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei

Romance, Drama, Fluff, Friendship

This man oozed danger. Nonetheless you are attracted to him and you grow closer to him than anyone has ever before. Being nice to a stranger was what got it all started.

Burn to a Cinder (Ch. 7) https://archiveofourown.org/works/18781273/chapters/51374644

F/M, Zechs Merquise/Reader, Treize Khushrenada/Reader

Zechs Merquise, Treize Khushrenada, Lady Une, Mariemaia Khushrenada, Relena Peacecraft, Chang Wufei

Romance, Drama, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Violence, Reader-Insert

Your path had been laid out for you from an early age, allowing you to move into the higher circles of society and catch the attention of one of the most powerful men in the Earth Sphere. As Treize’s mistress, you watch his rise to power and the disastrous war breaking out on Earth and in Space, putting your loyalty to the test. You are torn between your duty to His Excellency, and your unquellable lust for one of the top soldiers under his command. And when he rises to power in Outer Space, there is nothing you can do but stand back and watch them tear each other apart. This is no game of hearts, but yours is at stake, and the consequences can be felt for years to come. Labeled as OZ’s whore, you struggle to find your way, only for things to fall apart around you again. But then there is still Zechs, and the undeniable way he makes you feel…

@doctormegalomania

Your Body’s Poetry (Ch. 7) https://archiveofourown.org/works/20438891/chapters/48490382

Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei/Original Female Character(s), Duo Maxwell/Hilde Schbeiker, Relena Peacecraft & Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell/Original Male Character(s)

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei, Sally Po, Relena Peacecraft, Lucrezia Noin, Zechs Merquise, Hilde Schbeiker

Past Relationship(s), Slice of Life, Post-Break Up, Slow Burn, Developing Relationship, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence

Long after the wars, long after peace is established the Gundam Pilots discover one immovable fact: Relationships are hard work.

@duointherain

The Hidden Cherry (Ch. 1) https://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/189338568519/fic-the-hidden-cherry-1

Intersex Duo, disabled Heero

He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. Duo wanted to think that the stress in his voice made him sound like an asshole and that would motivate the person on the other side of the phone. The space he was in was small, like 3 meters by maybe 5. His cigarette lighter had given him enough light to see the space, but it was back in his pocket now. “I need an analyst. It’s fucking Wednesday. There is an analyst in the office.”

@janaverse

Stickies from Heero (Ch. 26) https://archiveofourown.org/works/19796581/chapters/51374212

Chapter 26: ‘circumnavigating the simple truth’ is now on AO3. It was nice to actually get another story written for this odd universe!

Duo reads Heero latest note and fallout ensues.

Rough https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/189270598643/drabble-day-38-adult-themes-rough-heero-stood

drabble - day 38 - adult themes

Consider it done https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/187883433878/consider-it-done

So this is the follow up to my short fic ‘something to consider’ which I posted about a week or so ago. You can find it here: https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/187689757828/something-to-consider or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20669474 in case you have not read it yet. this fic will make infinitely more sense if you have!

pairing: 1X2X1

warnings: unholy amounts of sap and lovey dovey stuff. please take this warning seriously! lol this is THE sappiest thing i have ever written!

Heero had entered the house first, taking off his soaked shoes and leaving them out on the front porch beside the door. Duo had followed suit, noticeably shivering once inside the house, and headed toward their bedroom to get changed. Heero had only removed his jacket and hung it on the coat rack inside the front door; opting to start a fire before getting out of his wet clothes and into something dry.

@ransomedbard

Clipped Wings (Ch. 3) https://archiveofourown.org/works/21360976/chapters/51500641

Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker

Preventer!Duo, Criminal!Hilde, 2+H, Adventure, Kidnapping, mild violence, Crime doesn't actually pay

Time has a funny way of turning history on its head. Two years after the Eve Wars, former rebel Duo Maxwell is now a member of the secretive anti-terrorism unit Preventers, while Hilde has been living on the wrong side of the law on Earth. When he makes a visit to attempt to salvage their strained friendship, he’ll uncover just how much their paths have diverged, and end up getting caught up in her life on the run from a gang that wants revenge.

Fanart/Gunpla/Photo Manips:

@animethingsandstuff

https://animethingsandstuff.tumblr.com/post/189231234100/w-night-by-%E3%82%80%E3%81%86%E3%81%9F%E3%82%8D-posted-with-permission-please

The G-boys and posing... and flowers.

Photosets/Gifsets/Screenshots/Manga Pages:

@vegalume

https://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/189361489995/i-immediately-thought-of-heero-but-this-could-be

Before leaving the house, Heero does...

Fandom Discourse:

@amberlyinviolet

https://janaverse.tumblr.com/post/189290275628/i-am-here-for-the-giving-of-the-happily-ever-after

@noirangetrois, @janaverse

About the struggles of all GW characters.

@incorrectgundamwingquotes

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326495789/unpopular-opinion-despite-the-horrible

Unpopular Opinion: FT had good points.

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326409984/for-unpopular-opinion-not-on-the-series-itself

Unpopular Opinion: 1X2 is overrated.

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326308699/i-dont-know-if-this-is-actually-an-unpopular

Unpopular Opinion: EW was not that great.

@lifeaftermeteor

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/189380639699/life-after-meteor

LAM has a website now!

@ransomedbard

https://ransomedbard.tumblr.com/post/189357520583/thank-you

Fandom loves you too!

@terrablaze514

https://terrablaze514.tumblr.com/post/189258275567/wing-zero-episodes

Wing Zero Episodes (Who flew it better?)

My opinions on Wing Zero and the impact it plays. Borderline meta I guess, and excuse the occurrence of Trowa and Zechs muses.

Quotes:

@incorrectgundamwingquotes

https://gwminorcharactersrpblog.tumblr.com/post/189313789527/quatre-why-is-your-back-all-scratched-up-trowa

Quatre & Trowa

With additions made by @gwminorcharactersrpblog

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189293229002/texting-duo-hello-duo-are-you

Duo & Trowa

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189298062910/quatre-you-should-be-nicer-to-people-heero

Quatre, Heero, Duo, Trowa, & WuFei

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189326315129/zechs-you-played-me-like-a-fiddle-duo-oh-no-i

Zechs & Duo

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189333739266/duo-whyre-you-ignoring-relena-heero-im

Duo, Heero, & WuFei

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189338458478/trowa-handing-duo-some-pills-here-take-four-of

Trowa & Duo

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189342871815/heero-ill-worry-about-that-bridge-when-i-get-to

Heero & Quatre

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189358288319/heero-dont-correct-me-wufei-dont-be-wrong

Heero & WuFei

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189397723234/duo-uh-its-salt-wufei-thats-what-i

Duo & WuFei

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/189377500808/une-about-mariemaia-you-cant-give-her-that

Une & WuFei

Calendar Events:

@gundamzine

Rhythm Generation: Shooting Stars, Celebrating 25 Years of Gundam Wing

Zine Content https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/186791784139/rhythm-generation-shooting-stars-is-an-unofficial

Pre-orders Open! https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/189370843928/gundamzine-pre-orders-are-open-rhythm Open until January 11th!

Q about Free Merch https://gundamzine.tumblr.com/post/189215831466/are-you-really-giving-free-merch-i-am-kinda

@gundam-wing-bingo

Gundam Wing Bingo is here!

Come and sign up for a card here: https://gundam-wing-bingo.tumblr.com/post/185466400076/gundam-wing-bingo

@gwcocktailfriday

Cocktail Fridays!

Post responses on Friday, during Happy Hour between 3 & 5 pm in your own timezone.

Here’s the prompt for Friday, December 6th! https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/post/189390586070/cocktail-friday-post-responses-on-friday-december

For those going to Pillowfort, find us here.

If anyone has ideas for prompts, PLEASE send them in! Our ask box is always open.

In need of Winter prompts!

@thisweekingundamevents

Gundam Wing Holiday Gift Exchange 2019/2020

https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188113410410/holiday-gift-exchange

Schedule: 5-11 January: Post your Gifts!

Holiday Exchange Q & A: https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188824081840/some-holiday-exchange-q-a

Criteria and Schedule Reminder! https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/188943007445/holiday-gift-exchange-reminder

Gundam Wing Unorthodox Undercover Work Mini Bang

Posting starts today!

Here’s everything you need to know to post! https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/189346329635/gw-uuw-mb-posting-again-lol

For those artists who haven’t a story, if you finished your piece, feel free to post it up on tumblr. Remember to tag us and I’ll get you in the End of Event Roundup anyway! ^_^

Posting Dates: https://thisweekingundamevents.tumblr.com/post/189405682420/posting-dates-gwuuwmb

Note! There is also a Gundam Wing Discord Meet-up going on right now! See @lifeaftermeteor for details and a discord invite if you aren’t in it already!

#Gundam Wing #This Week in Gundam Wing #Weekly Roundup #24-30 November 2019

11 notes · View notes

joyofcrime-elinorhigh · 5 years

Text

2018 Year in REVIEW: Part 2

Hello everybody, JoyofCrimeArt here, and it's time to wrap up Deviant-cemnber by finishing this recap. If you're just joining us I'm going over all the events that happened to the cartoon community thought the year of 2018. I'm also ranking all the new series from best to worse, and deciding which network was the quote unquote "winner" of the year. If you haven't seen part one, you can check it out here. 2018 Year in REVIEW: Part 1 But for everyone else, let's get on with the review. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So at the end of the last part, we had to deal with that whole "Thundercats CalArts" debacle. Not exactly the most "positive" stopping point. So why don't we start this part with something light? Oh hey, look, people are talking about Butch Hartman! He's always good for a laugh. What's he up too?

Oh no...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBOMlWl7fFk

So Butch Hartman, America's dad, started a Kickstarter for his own streaming service. It's called Oaxis and is suppose to be a family friendly streaming service with original programming along the lines of Netflix. Butch asked for 250,000 dollars in order to get the basic groundwork for the site up and running. That's a lot of money to ask for, so there's no way he could actually...Holy crap, he actually did it! The madman pulled it off! Now, there's a lot to unload here. Butch Hartman's streaming service initially was met with controversy due to how vague everything about it was. There were a lot of unanswered questions. We didn't know what kind of shows it would have outside of a few failed pilots that Butch had pitched to various networks in the years prior. Were there other creators had plans to affiliate themselves with the project? All of these unanswered questions lead a lot of people to think that this was all just a big scam. If I had to make a guess, I have a feeling that part of the point of the Kickstarter was to act as a proof of concept. A way to show investors that there was an interest in the service. While a quarter of a million dollars is a lot, that's still not anywhere NEAR enough to run an entire new entertainment platform. However, I wanna be devil's advocate here. Butch Hartman has some experience in this field.The Noog Network, is an app that he developed that specializes in family friendly animated and live action shorts all created by Butch Hartman himself. Not exactly the same as a streaming service, but still. And consider that Butch has ties to people in the industry, and has experiences running a business in the form of his nonprofit charity The Hartman House, MAYBE he could pull it off? Maybe? Possibly... But that's not where the controversy ends however! As footage leaked of old Butch-y boi speaking at a church event promoting Oaxis. Here he made several claims that many found to be a bit disconcerting. Such as claims that his streaming service would feature "Christian values" which is something not at all mentioned in his Kickstarter. As a Christian myself I've always thought of Christian values as things like kindness, generosity, respect. All things that aren't necessarily exclusive to Christianity. So maybe he meant like that. However, the fact that he was invited as a special guest to a church to speak about the service...It's definitely a little bit suspect. There's nothing wrong with making a streaming service aimed at Christian families, but you should at least mention it in the Kickstarter. That way people know what they're donating too. He later specified in a tweet that while the service wouldn't inherently be Christian themed, but since Butch Hartman is a devout Christian himself, that would always carry over into his work no matter what he does. It should be noted that in the same speech he list his previous shows as containing the same "Christian values" and I don't think anybody was ever converted to Christianity by T.U.F.F Puppy. I don't know. Man, between this and last years Castlevania, I love being forced to talk about my religious views in a article that's suppose to be about dumb cartoon shows. He also made a controversial claim saying that suicides are more common now of days because of peoples addition to cell phones and technology. Saying that because of these technology people not talking to their parents as much as a result. I'm not a researcher on this, so I have no idea if this is actually true. I could definitely see that could at least be partially true with things like cyber bulling and the lack of communication with parents COULD possibly be a factor in the increases of suicides. But it defiantly feels like a disservice to just ignore issues like mental health being a factor. I can defiantly see how people could of taken offense. All of this backlash lead to everyone's favorite 2018 game! "Attack people online until they apologize!" Cause as we all know, nothing makes an apology more sincere than when it's forced out of them by an angry mob! But eventually all the heat died down when all the "Butch Hartman Rant" videos stopped getting views, I mean, when there was nothing left to talk about. Overall, I think that the situation was just bad on all fronts. Butch should of said something to explain himself, and not be so vague in his goals. But also, we live in a day and age where I honestly wonder if that would of been the smartest move. It feels like once people have their opinion set, there's no going back. I mean how often to celebrity apologizes even work? Still though, smart or not, it would of been the right thing to do. However, I would like to point out that all of this hate started simply because he reached his goal. All the stuff about the church and his suicide comments all came after he was already getting hate for being a scam artist. But the thing is, we don't even know if he is a scam artist or not. Sure, the fact that he's barely talked about Oaxis at all since the Kickstarter was funded doesn't bode well. But from what I could fine, he's given out most of the rewards he promised. And on the Kickstarter page he says the site wasn't expected to launch until mid 2020. Do I think Butch will be able to pull this off? Probably not...but I hope he does. I want Oaxis to be a thing, cause I am interested in some of the shows he's talked about putting on there, like Elf Detective. And if you hate Butch and hope for Oaxis to fail, that's your prerogative. But if you are hoping for it to fail, than you're hoping that nearly thirteen hundred people got scammed out of their money. Just saying. Ugh! I'm sick of this drama. I want more uplifting Kickstarter news! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rMCkNgHa3c

Homestar Runner was one of the first big web series that existed B.Y. Before Youtube. The series has been running off and on for about nineteen years now. And the creators, The Brother Chaps, decided to make a Kickstarter campaign to make a tabletop board game based on one of there series most popular characters. Trogdor, the Burniator. A poorly drawn dragon with an affinity for burning down cottages. The Kickstarter was set up for a goal seventy thousand dollars. Which feels like a lot for a board game, but hey, what do I know. While Homestar still has a very loyal fanbase, the series defiantly is nowhere near as popular as it was in the early to mid two thousands. And seventy thousand is a pretty hefty goal? Would a board game based on an outdated internet meme from 2004 really be able to make that kind of money? It reached it's goal in less than a day. And by the end they ended up making over one point four million dollars! I don't know what exactly The Brothers Chaps are going to do with all that money, but it's nice to know that the Homestar fanbase is still alive and well after all that time. And it's also nice to just see a Kickstarter that reached it's goal, delivered everything it promised, and didn't get into any major controversies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anyway, back to controversy. Cyma Zarghami, president of Nickelodeon since 2006, resigned. And people hate her because of some...controversy. Something about unions I think? Yeah, I didn't bother looking into this one. Between the Thundercats Roar drama and Butch Hartman stuff, I just couldn't go through all of this again. Sometimes ignorance is bliss, so I'm perfectly happy to be the ostrich with it's head in the sand on this one! However, like I said last time, it'll be very interesting to see what happens to Nickelodeon in the next couple of years. Without Butch Hartman, Dan Schneider, and now Cyma Zarghami I feel like Nickelodeon five years from now could be something completely unrecognizable from what it is today. And hopefully it'll be in a good way. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- But hey, this year wasn't all drama though. I mean look at all the new shows we got. Like Pinky Malinky.

DELAYED! Okay, well at least we finally have Young Justice season three...

DELAYED! The new Harley Quinn Cartoon...

DELAYED! FXX's Deadpool?

CANCELED! TBS's Close Enough from Regular Show creator JG Quintel?

WHO THE FU*K EVEN KNOWS AT THIS POINT? Seriously, what's with this year? It's like everything has been delayed! What the heck? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nickelodeon announced that they're making a reboot for the Rugrats. And just...why? Money- Yes, I know it's money! But it's a show about babies! When you make a reboot of something, the entire point is to update it. But when your show is about babies, how are you suppose to do that? Babies today are still doing the same things that babies did back in 1991. And with the first show having one hundred seventy two half hour episodes. What stories are left to tell? Then again, anything can be good. That Muppet Babies reboot (Which I didn't watch and isn't on this list) seems to be pretty well received. So maybe it could work. I don't know. I've never seen to much Rugrats growing up, so it's hard for me to get excited for this. But I'm sure someone will enjoy it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So Netflix decided to drop all of their new series all at the end of the year. Their first one is Matt Groening's Disenchantment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp_RnJcb8Ig

The series follows Bean, the princess of the magical kingdom of Dreamland. She's a bitter snarky alcoholic, cause AGAIN, NEVER SEEN THAT CHARACTER DONE BEFORE! The series follows her, as well as her personal demon Luci and her elf companion Elfo through various misadventures. Think what Futurama did with Sci-fi but with a fantasy setting and you have this show. Only...Comedy Centeral era Futurama. I didn't really enjoy the first seven or so episodes of this show that much. The show wasn't bad per say, but it wasn't really anything great either. This show is aimed slightly more towards adults than Matt Groening's previous works, having a TV-14 rating instead of a TV-PG. The humor is a bit darker and edgier, and it lead to this very mean spirited feel over the entire show. The cast aren't particularly likable, and Dreamland just isn't a fun setting to be around. One thing I did like however was the fact that the show had an on going continuity and changing status quo. This is refreshing considering that Matt Groenings other shows (mainly The Simpsons) are famous for almost always returning to their status quo. But here's the weird thing, starting with episode 8, the show suddenly has this MASSIVE spike in quality out of nowhere as all the plot points that have been building over the course of the season all start to pay off. The characters all become a lot more likable. The stakes are raised. Like, it's weird how different these last three episodes are. I'd go into more detail, but unfortunately I can't due to spoilers, but trust me, the show gets better. It's not "classic Simpsons" or "classic Futurama" good, but still. It's not THAT far off. This sudden spike in quality makes it hard for me to decide how to rate this show. But since most of the run is pretty sub par, I kinda just have to average it out. Unfortunately due to the continuity you can't just skip till the end. It all really depends how patient you are. But even the bad stuff isn't awful or anything. It's just kinda bland. The show was picked up for a second season and I am looking forward to seeing where this show will go. I think that season two could be something great, but just talking about season one, it's...okay. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hey, it feels like it's been a while since we had a controversy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZSOGZFfSDk

It seems recently there are so many streaming services out there creating there own original series, it's hard to keep track. You got Netflix, Hulu, DC Universe, Soon they'll be Disney+...Oaxis- So it only made since for a site like Cruchyroll to start making they're own exclusive content. You'd think they would just hire some anime studio to make originals for them like Netflix does. But no, they decided to go with a more American styled series. High Guardian Spice. The trailer doesn't reveal much about the show, but plot wise it sounds eerily similar similar to RWBY. About a group of girls all named after different spices going to school to become "Guardians." Whatever that means. There were a lot of reason people were upset. From it be a more Americanized looking series. To the fact that Cruchyroll's (from what I hear) site having some interface problems that some people would rather have them devoting the money on fixing. But the main reason people were upset was because of the series trailer spent more time talking about the diversity of the crew and characters than they did the show plot. Outrage was also sparked from the fact that they use the fact that they have an all female writers room as a sign of there "diversity." Even though having a writers room were everyone is the same gender isn't actually diverse. I have no problem with diversity in my stories. But the fact that they chose to focus on it as a highlight when they talked so little about the story of the characters is what has me worried. It makes me worried that the crew aren't confident enough in the series premise and characters to carry the series on it's own. It's better to make a story that's good first, and diverse second as oppose to the other way around. When you do it the other way, you end up with Ghostbusters 2016. I think. I never saw it, but I hear it's "okay" at BEST. People don't like things shoved down there throats, even if it's something they agree with. Most people support diversity. But when you tell them that they HAVE to support it, that's what makes people start to hate it. Humans are very spiteful creatures in that regard. However, despite all of that, I'm still kinda excited for this show. I LOVE the art style. And you all know by now that I love me a good girly cartoon. And many other shows that boast about their diversity (Like Steven Universe and She Ra, which I'll get to in little bit) still manage to be good. It can be distracting when you see a cartoon and know what ideals the creators are trying to push. I get it. But sometimes you just have to take the death of the author approach, and just see the show for what it is on it's own. You might be surprised by what you can enjoy. We'll have to wait to see how this show pans out. But if they're able to include some Mike Toole, I'm sold.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It seems like every year we have one BIG cartoon finale. 2016 had Gravity Falls. 2017 had Regular Show. And now after eight long years, it's time for Adventure Times Grand Finn-ale. ...I'm not sorry. Adventure Time ended with an hour long episode "Come Along with Me." I'll try to not spoil the special TOO much for those who haven't seen it, but if you want to go in completely blind I suggest skipping down to the next segment cause this is your SPOILER WARNING. The special revolves around the Gum War between Princess Bubblegum and her Uncle Gumbald. A plot that had been slowly growing all season. On top of that, Betty and Normal Man are trying to find a way to turn Ice King back into Simon. The things I do like about the finale is just the sheer number of callbacks that were made. While I think a few did go over my head, as there are a few episodes of Adventure Time I've never gotten around to seeing, it's nice to see so many returning concepts and characters. I'm glad they included things from the entire series run, instead of just the "classic" episodes that most people would recognizes. It rewards fans who stuck around for the long haul. It was also nice seeing most of the series lingering plot points wrap up. And we finally got to see the kiss that we've all been waiting years for. And kudos to CN for allowing them to do it. It was very brave of them. I am of course talking about LSP and Lemongrab, baby! Wooh!

There's also the ending. Which is just a montage set to the end credits song showing where all the characters end up after the series. I love endings like this so damn much, and while it didn't hit me as hard as Regular Show's finales montage, it still hits the feels.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIkS8eGCKOU

The special does have it's flaws though. The Gum War really felt like an anti-climax and the shift to GOLB felt very out of left field. Also the fate of Uncle Gumbald left a very bad taste in my mouth. It kinda felt like they went against the whole point they tried to make. I admit that I didn't enjoy this finale as much as I did the Gravity Falls or Regular Show finales, but it's still sad seeing Adventure Time go. It defined cartoons of the 2010's. And I don't think they'res been a show since that's been quite like it. Even though the later seasons weren't as good, Adventure Time will always have a special place in my heart. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Netflix continues to pump out series after series with another new series, Dragon Prince.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWEtCsi3Eo8

Dragon Prince is a series set in a fantasy world in the midst of war. On one side is the humans, and on the other side the Elves and Dragons. The series follows two human princes, Callum and Ezran as well as a elf assassin named Rayla, as they go on a quest that will hopefully bring peace to there world. The series features a lot of crew and voice actors who previously worked on Avatar: The Last Airbender. And it shows. I mean both shows follow a group of kids traveling through a fantasy world in the middle of a war. The seasons are called books, and each book based on a different element of the magic system. I was worried this show would falls end up being just a carbon copy of Avatar. But luckily, the show does manage to have it's own feel despite having a lot of stimulates. The animation is a bit of a mixed bag. It's cel shaded CGI, similar to RWBY. But despite the series being made by a company much bigger than Rooster Teeth, the animation is so much more lag-y. Something about the frame rate seems off at times. Also I noticed background characters being copied and recolored a few times in my watch. But none of this took me to much out of the experience. The characters and writing are all really good for the most part. One of the best parts of Avatar was how it showed that both sides of the war had normal people. And Dragon Prince takes this element and brings it one step further. Neither side of the war are depicted as wholly right or wholly wrong, with both sides committing terrible acts. That's a lot of complexity for a show that's aimed at children. However, there is a villain who, while I won't reveal who he/she is, feels very cartoonishly evil for this otherwise complex world. Like, you could make this character complex very easily. A lot of the villains goals and reasoning makes sense, and are even justifiable. But the methods used are just the most mustache twirling ways of achieving these goals, even when there are less evil ways of accomplishing the same thing. It's weirdly out of place. However, despite the flaws, Dragon Prince is a really good show that manages to feel similar to Avatar while still being it's own thing. I highly recommend you check it out. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Speaking of Avatar, Netflix is making one! Particularly a live action reboot. And just...Why? Money- Yes, I know it's money! But everybody already love the original Avatar! What is there to change? What needs to be updated? And what can be done in live action that can't be done in animation. It feels like all these live action remakes only exist in order to "legitimize" their animated counterparts. Cause God forbid something animated be watched by adults. I dunno. There's a very good chance this could be good, but I doubt it'll be better than the original series. I have no interest in this. Netflix, you have Dragon Prince! You don't need this! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- But Netflix isn't done yet! Cause we also have Hilda! Based on the series of graphic novels of the same name.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCojP2Ubuto

Hilda follows...Hilda. A young adventurous girl who spent her whole life living in a magical forest with her Mom. That is until one day her Mom decides to move to the city of Trolberg. Now Hilda has to learn to adapt to her new surroundings in the city, learn to make friends with normal humans, and deal with magical creatures. Cause despite the fact that Trolberg has a wall designed to keep magical creatures out, the city really sucks at doing so. This shows really cute! The art style reminds me of a cross between Steven Universe and The Loud House. But with any series involving kids interacting with magical creatures the comparisons are going to be brought up. Is Hilda the next Over The Gravity Garden Falls? Seriously, ever video on Youtube about Hilda brings up this comparison. And really, outside of the premise of "adventurous child exploring magical forest" Hilda isn't really like either of those shows. Hilda is a lot lighter in tone than those two series. The monsters aren't as scary and the humor is a lot less snarky. There aren't really that many "jokes" in Hilda as the series relies more on overall pleasantness. Also there isn't any real overarching mystery element in Hilda. It's more slice of life. Why can't Hilda just be the next...Hilda? It's a quaint show. From the animation, to the tone, to the voice acting, it all just feels so cozy. I also love the creativity with all the different creatures they come up with. It's has a unique charm to it, and it's fun seeing a world where everyone just knows magic exist and society has integrated with it. If I had to point out a few flaws, I'd say that the subplot they have with Hilda's best friend Frieda wasn't very good. I really have no idea what they were going for with that. And the show can be a bit repetitive at times, but that might just be because I had to binge it in order to finish it in time for this review. But overall this is a really nice show. Check it out if you can. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OK KO is well known for it's crossovers from Captain Planet to Mighty Magiswords. But this year, they created the ultimate crossover. And if we could just appreciate the dedication to the past that the crew for OK KO clearly had when making this crossover? You all know what I'm talking about right? OK KO meet Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School Baby! That's right, the crossover that we've all been waiting for.

... AND THEY SAID AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR WAS THE MOST AMBITIOUS CROSSOVER OF ALL TIME! They were even allowed to use the original Hannah-Barbara model sheets. This is notable as I think it's the first time OK KO has ever actually used a model sheet. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hey, everybody loves Fallout 76, right? While we all agree the game is a flawless masterpiece, I just wish there was a way to somehow make it even better. Like, what if we got the twitch streamer Ninja, The rapper Logic, and RICK AND MORTY to all live stream the game together? Now THAT would be a lot of IQ....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMZhhTOF4l8

... aNd ThEy SaId ThAt AvEnGeRs: InFiItY wAr WaS tHe MoSt AmBiTiOuS cRoSsOvEr oF AlL tImE!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I swear, Netflix won't be satisfied until they make at least one thousand original animated series a year. Here's She-Ra and the Princess of Power. Not to be confused with She-Ra: Princess of Power. That's the 80's show. Good job naming your show there, Netflix!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuFQxsRzUws

This is the cheesiest theme song ever, I love it so much! Now, from what I understand, a lot of OG She-Ra fans don't like this reboot because it changed so much from the original. However, as someone who knows next to nothing about She-Ra or He-Man, I'm can't really comment on any inaccuracies. So I'm going to have to judge it as it's own thing. She-Ra follows Adora, a child solider serving as force captain in The Horde army. But one day, after finding a magical sword in the forest, she gains the ability to transform into the Hero, She-Ra. Not long after that she finds out that, shock of all shock, the army that's literally called THE HORDE are actually the bad guys. so she defects from the Horde, and joins the Rebellion with her new friends Bow and Glimmer. Now Adora, along with a growing army of magical princesses, must find a way to fight back against the Horde. Meanwhile The Horde, specifically Adora adopted sister/possible...lover Catra try to bring her back to her "home." I like this show. It's not amazing or anything. But it's a fun, girly action series. That's something I like about Netflix, it's one of the only channels out there that's not afraid to do action series. While the characters aren't that complex, they're fun and all have good chemistry together. Everybody feels like a real person. And this applies to both the Rebellion and the Horde. The show does a good job of juggling a lot of characters, while still keeping focus on the main cast. AND YOU WANNA TALK SAD, LONELY LESBIANS! THIS WHOLE SHOW IS A SAD LONELY LESBIAN! Though did anyone else find it a bit strange that Adora's relationship with Catra seemingly bounces back and forth between "sister" and "lover." Like, I don't care which way you go with, but you really need to pick one or the other... I know a lot of people are annoyed by the fact that a lot of classic designs and characters were changed to make the show more diverse. I didn't mind this to much. Adaptations change race, sexuality, and body types all the time. And I can only think of one time where it ever felt distracting, and even then it was brief. I never found it to bothersome. Downsides though, the tone is kinda wonky at times. Nothing to noticeable, but sometimes it seems like the show is trying to be a serious action adventure, while other times it feels like it's trying to be campy like the 80's series. There's an episode called "Princess Prom" and it's one of the turning points in the season. Like, how am I suppose to take this seriously. But luckily it never gets that bad. I think the show is somewhat aware of a wink and nod nature to the show. It's a fun series. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And unfortunately, we have to end the year on a downer note. As Stephen Hillenburg, creator of Spongebob, passed away at the age of 57 from ALS. I don't know what to say. I hate taking an entire human beings life and acting like there art is all that mattered. But as I don't know the man personally, I'll just say that he created one of the most well know fictional characters of all time. Spongebob is the first thing most people think of when you say Nickelodeon. And it's one of the few characters that I think will be remembered even a hundred years in the future, along the likes of Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, and Popeye. Even in death, his legacy will live on. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And with that, we end 2018 year in review! It's been a hell of a wild ride! But how does the year rank overall? First, we'll start with my old favorite. Ranking the series in a way that'll end up regretting in a month! Keep in mind this is a rough list. List aren't really my specially, and each show offers and is going for it's own unique thing. So sometimes it's hard to compare them. Also these rankings could change in the following year as new episodes come out. But if I had to rank them... 9. Apple and Onion 8. Craig of the Creek 7. Final Space 6. Disenchantment 5. Nomad of Nowhere 4. She Ra and The Princess of Power 3. Ballmastrz 9006 2. Hilda 1. Dragon Prince And keep in mind that, due to both a lack of time and lack of cable, there were a lot of shows I wasn't able to check out or just wasn't interested in discussing. Like these! (Big City Greens, Harvey Street Kids, Mega Man: Fully Charged, Muppet Babies, Our Cartoon President (HAHA! Trump jokes! Never seen those before!), Paradise PD (Cause we definitely need another show from the makers of Brickleberry!), Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Star Wars Resistance, Summer Camp Island, Super Drags, The Adventures of Kid Danger, The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants, The Hollow, The Shivering Truth, Total Dramarama) As for the grade, it's a bit tricky. If I had to go just by the shows, I'd give it a B. They're weren't many shows I LOVED but they're weren't many shows I outright hated. Most shows this year were "good." But if we decide to count all the drama, that would drag the year all the way down to a C. There was just so much drama that, along with a few other personal reasons, I found myself kinda falling out of the animation community as a whole this year. And when the drama actually starts making you wonder why you entered this community in the first place, that's not a good thing. So take that for what you will. As for best network, I once again have to give it to Netflix. I know it's kinda unfair since I didn't watch any Nickelodeon or Disney shows this year. But with so many more shows and channels watching a show from each is getting harder and harder. And Netflix is just pumping out series after series. And most of them are pretty good. It feels like the people at Netflix are really given free range to do whatever they want over there. And we get some really unique series as a result. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2018 may not have been the best year for animation, but I really think that 2019 is going to be a really good year. I mean just with what's already been announced we've got so many good series to look forward to! There's Infinity Train, Owl House, Amphibia, Los Casagrandes, Victor and Valentino, Gen: Lock, Harley Quinn, Young Justice Season Three, Theoretically Close Enough! Plus a lot more! Seriously, next year I'm either going to have to cut out a lot of anticipated series or make this a three part-er. Which would you prefer? And what did you think of 2018 for animation? What series were the best, and which were the worst? Leave any thoughts in the comments down bellow, I'd love to hear em. Fav, Follow, and comment if you like the review. And have a great new year. And let's all hope that 2019 can have a little less drama. Um, isn't Thundercats Roar and High Guardian Spice coming out next year too? 2019 is going to be the biggest dumper fire ye- Have a great day. (I do not own any of the images or videos in this review. All credit goes to there original owners.)

https://www.deviantart.com/joyofcrimeart/journal/2018-Year-in-REVIEW-Part-2-779673316 DA Link

#Dragon Prince #She Ra #High Guardian Spice #Hilda #Adventure Time

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eddtober · 6 years

Text

Eddtober Masterpost: About, Rules, Boundries and Prompt Lists.

I hadn’t done anything about it until now due to no response - however the wonderful @ldhenzel suggested that I do it this way for mobile users.

About Eddtober

Eddtober is a list of prompts made in an effort to encourage the Eddsworld Fandom to spread their wings of creativity beyond the norms that they are used to, during the month of October.

It is all without harming others or causing drama, a neutral ground for all fans of Eddsworld to come and have fun, no matter what side of a discourse they’re in.

It hopes to promote inspiration beyond the usual angsty and over-dramatised content, to revive a spirit in Eddsworld that hasn’t been seen in many years, and to stretch the invitation to all who can create.

Eddtober calls not only the artists who have a talent for drawing, painting and so forth, but also: the authors (fanfics, journalists, essayists, diarists, poets, ramblers), the cosplayers, the video-makers (animators, video essays, memers, youtubers) and all those who want to be inspired with unconventional creativity.

Eddtober’s motto for the fandom it came from is this: To come forth, be inspired and break from the old and the mold!

With that out the way, buckle up. This post is gonna be a long one under the cut.

RULES

Base Rules need to be set so everyone can participate in Eddtober safely and in a fun way. Please read them carefully!

Always tag it with #eddtober. Gore and related NSFW is allowed in the challenge, but please tag it as #Eddtober gore, etc. Also, no shortenings or reimaginings of those tags, so the minors on this site don’t find it on accident. Though many of us may be over 18, please keep these things in mind.

Be Sensitive and Respectful to Others. I know many of us here in this fandom can take easy offence to certain types of art, so please consider and think on your creative piece before you post.

Credit Where Due. This should be blatantly obvious right now, but please, please don’t steal other’s creative fanwork or post it without credit. Always have permission from the creator to post something of their’s, and always have their username when you post it, not just ‘credit to the artist’. If you do not follow this, actions will be taken for your consequences.

Keep yourself chill. You can do one prompt for Eddtober, some of the prompts or all of them - up to you! It’s understandable if life gets in the way. The goal of Eddtober is not to do every prompt, but to be inspired to create fan-content in a way you usually wouldn’t have.

Spread the word. This is less of a rule and more of a personal request from Admin Panda, but since she doesn’t have many social media accounts you’d expect, spreading word of Eddtober would mean a LOT, so they can join in the fun too!

Sharing is caring. Reblogging and sharing from your fellow creators doing Eddtober would be great to give them a motivation and confidence boost!

Go Beyond the Boundries of Your Imagination. The whole purpose of Eddtober is to promote new, fresh things to come up in the Eddsworld fandom and break a cycle of the same old that’s been there for a while. Take a leap, spread your wings, do your best, and go have fun.

BOUNDRIES

Most of this list will be related to Rule Two of Eddtober:

Be Sensitive and Respectful to Others.

Quote:

‘I know many of us here in this fandom can take easy offence to certain types of art, so please consider and think on your creative piece before you post.‘

Whilst Eddtober is a fun, neutral place to spread our creative wings, there are boundries that need to be taken in order to keep everyone safe. Which means certain parts that are usually seen as ‘common’ within the Eddsworld Fandom will not be acceptable in the challenge.

Edd Gould’s death. Admin Panda wishes to make it clear that creative pieces that draws clear lines to Edd’s passing IS NOT okay. This includes Edd in hospital for cancer, Angel Edd or any AU that depicts him as a divine being of any sort (including Blessworld) unless Tom, Matt and/or Tord are also similar divine beings in the AU. Here at Eddtober, Edd's life is something to be celebrated, not his death. While Admin Panda isn’t 100% offended by this, many others are and it should be more recognised as such.

Sinsworld. Believe it or not, the sinsworld tag was specifically made back in the day to keep the porn out of the main. But due to a certain in-fandom event, this intended action has been long-lost. Because of all of these events, any sinsworld (porn, lewds and related NSFW) that’s Sinspired by the Eddtober prompts WILL NOT be accepted into the event by any means. This is because many in this fandom are minors/underage and more who are 18+ are repulsed to porn and such (Admin Panda is part of the latter group). So please, it is fine to be sexually inspired by the prompts, PLEASE keep your Sinsworld content away from the Eddtober tag - don’t put both tags into that post, essentially.

Abusive/Self-Harm Creative Content. No. Just. No. Death or pain like this isn’t allowed to be depicted in the challenge and should never be romanticised or supported. Eddtober aims to be a safe and uplifting space for all creative people, no matter what their space is at the moment.

More sensitivities and boundries will be added onto this list as Admin Panda recieves questions and requests for this area through the askbox here.

PROMPT LIST

Quick reminder: when this list says ‘create something for’, it’s not just referring to fanart - it refers to any medium, digital, traditional or unconventional, that can be used. The challenge here is to be creative as possible, not to stay conventional.

The List features Admin Panda’s Commentary. Some useless, some useful.

Create something for Edd. (Not his real-life counterpart, but the character. That needed some clearing up based on 2017’s results.)

Create something for Tom.

Create something for Matt

Create something for any pre-legacy season episode, except WTFuture. (You can do WTFuture if you want, but seeing that much of this fandom is currently made of people who came in after The End… It’d be worth having a crack at pre-legacy episodes.)

Create something for the crew’s symbols.

Create something for Superhero Alter Egos! (It doesn’t have to stop at PowerEdd’s canon either! Go nuts! Give Edd and his friends new superhero alibis and outfits!)

Create something for Supervillain Alter Egos! (Reminder that it doesn’t have to stop at the ‘Green/Blue/Purple/Red Leader scenario! Again, go nuts! Get wacky if you must!)

Create something for Minor characters of the show. (Except the Neighbours - they already have their own prompt.)

Create something for descendants of the main four guys. (Sure, you can make it about the love children of your favourite ships, but the point of this prompt specifically is to not be ship-related. See if you can come up with descendant characters from the bloodlines of the main four.)

Create something for Tord. (He’s late in this list for a reason. Trust me.)

Create something for the neighbours of 29 Dirdum Lane. Are Kim and Katya still there, or are there newbies in the street?

Create something for the neighbours of 25 Dirdum Lane.

Create something for unlucky things happening to the guys, or one of them. Feel free to go as dark or as humourous as you like!

Create something for genderbends of the guys, maybe as if the Ellsworld we know never existed. Or you can stick to canon, up to you.

This prompt is a wild card. Do with it as you wish. (In 2017 everyone was told to quote: ‘go whole hog on this’. The next thing we all knew, everybody literally drew pigs with the guys. That wasn’t supposed to be literally taken, but by god it was hilarious.)

Create something for your crew. Whether you’re the main character with your friends or have OCs taking that place or a mix of both is up to you.

Create something for an AU of Eddsworld. You can make one up on the spot, or even fan content for an AU that already exists is cool too. (As of rule number two of Eddtober, the Blessworld AU will not be accepted for this prompt. I know it is a popular AU, but if you have any issues with this, please contact me in the blog asks myself.)

Create something for Eddsworld as a video game. Whether it’s concepts and covers for your own ideas or fanart for games in the making such as Eddsworld Armageddon, up to you.

Create something for Todd, or whoever the ‘Tord’ figure is of 25 Dirdum Lane.

Create something for a Saloonatics-WTFuture Crossover. (What? Shenanigans could be made here, guys. Just take it!)

Create something for the future selves of the guys. Or if you want to take it up a notch, make your own versions of them! Have them all be hobos (#HoBrosforlife), or have cola not be banned in the future… up to you!

The End who? Create and elaborate on how you would finish off the Eddsworld Legacy season. (For the purposes of this prompt, I can accept an angsty end for this, but I personally do not recommend it. The Eddsworld fandom has had enough unnecessary angst already.)

Create something for Zanta. (I guess you could call him a Nightmare Before Christmas, then.)

Create something for an Eddsworld movie. Whether it’s stuff for the Eddsworld Fan Movie or your own ideas, up to you!

Create something for the deal with Tom’s eyes. If you want to call them that.

Pick a song, any song, and put that on repeat. Use it as inspiration to create something in relation to Eddsworld.

Create something for Edd Gould himself. Not his character in Eddsworld, the real-life person.

An obligatory prompt without Eddtober in the beginning: create something for Edd’s birthday. (This was made into a prompt and will permanently remain as one as Edd’s birthday shouldn’t be taken away from today.)

Create something for someone/multiple someones in the fandom who inspire you - even the small artists and writers and such who are just starting out!

Are you afraid of the dark? Are you getting goosebumps? Create scary/monstrous/terrifying things happening to the guys. Interpretation and how far you go with it is up to you.

Happy Halloween! Create something about the guys on this special spooky day. Interpretation is up to you.

If you have any questions, concerns or queries as to all of this, don’t be hesitant to come shoot an ask through this blog. Have fun and a safe Eddtober!

#Eddsworld #Eddtober #Eddtober 2018 #founder chris talks #Eddtober Fixings

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stayz4ever · 5 years

Text

Insomnia- Minsung//CHAPTER 1

Pairing: Minho x Jisung (some sort of Changlix)

Stuffz to know: Fluff, angst, mention of sexual activity, family problems, and last but not least my bad humor

Summary: It’s not Jisung’s fought that a little somebody deiced to come back in town. It is his fault for the events that will happen this summer though.

I can't sleep

So tell me

I stay awake again tonight

Maybe tomorrow night, too

So tell me now, I'll find a way

Tomorrow night too, there is no other way

I can't sleep

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The summer breeze hit against Jisung’s face as he struck his head out the window. The wind pushed his bed head hair out of his face to expose the forehead. Where is the car heading? To the only job Jisung has had that he actually enjoyed doing, life guard at a water park. For all of his high school years he stayed the summer at a program of sort that his school organized. He doesn’t mind the screaming kids or the occasional grown up that will tell him if he was doing his job right. As long as he has the sunshine hitting his skin, warming him up nothing can bother him.

“It sucks that this is our last summer here before we go to college and forget each other.” Chan spoke from the driver’s seat and Felix hollered from the back, “You can’t get rid of me, mate!”

“Truth be told you can never forget about any of us except maybe the dog sticking his head out the window.” Jeongin remarked causing Jisung to sigh with his head still out the window, “Yeah I’m so easily forgettable.” That was a lie and he knows it. He’s not an outgoing guy, trust in that. His friends are more than him. Jisung is the quiet one that tends to keep to himself, doesn’t like to talk too much and most definitely hates compliments. He’s not boosting his own ego when he says that compliments are thrown at him constantly. It just can’t be helped when he’s out in public with his friends people come up to him wondering if he’s model. That’s why he’s so hidden in the shadows even if his looks make him shine.....so saying that he’s forgettable is almost impossible.

“Hyunjin and the rest are there already!”

“Are all Australians this loud all the time?” Jisung sighed to himself.

“Are we sharing rooms with the same people or switching it up this time?”

“I wanna keep mine!” Felix screamed again and Jeongin tsked, “Why do you get to keep Seungmin for yourself? I don’t want to be with those two loud ones again this year.”

“Jisung is quieter than Seungmin.”

“Don’t let his act fool your little mind, Chan. Last year he wouldn’t shut up with Changbin!”

“You’re just as loud with anyone, Jeongin!” Felix snapped at him and the bickering continued.

“You’re both fucking dumb. I roomed with Seungmin last year and you two plus Changbin shared together.” Jisung turned to the arguing pair in the back and Jeongin tsked again, “I hate when he’s right.”

“I know right.”

“I’ll pick the damn roommates!”

-----------------------------------------------

Everyone gathered together again like a little reunion even if they saw one other the day before. A meeting happened in the cafeteria, like every year, for the newcomers to understand the system before their shifts tomorrow. It felt like summer camp for Jisung all over again. He only went for his last year of grade school and oh how he hated it. It was loud. Too loud. Everyone tried to make friends with each other even if they were from different schools, let alone different towns. His parents made him go since his brother loved going there when he was his age. It wasn’t fun.

“I picked the roommates and keep in mind I hate all of you.” Chan stood around the boys and added on, “Jeongin, Felix and Changbin like last year-”

“It’s bad enough that I have to restrain myself from pushing them down the slides. Imagine sharing rooms again!” Jeongin whined causing Changbin to wrap his arms around him in a headlock.

“Woojin and Seungmin you’re with me. Hyunjin and Jisung are together, the second floor too.”

“Isn’t Minho coming too? What room is he in?” Jisung grew tense from the question and Chan answered, “Did he tell you that he’s coming back, Changbin? He should have told me first….guess he’ll be with Hyunjin and Jisung if he does.” Now Minho is this big annoying idiot to Jisung. They are friends however and he has known him since forever like the rest. Minho left this program halfway through sophomore year and he didn’t show up at all last year. The rest of boys tried to question him on why he did that when school started again but they always got the same answer, ‘family stuff’. Hearing that always made Jisung’s blood boil. He knows that excuse all too well, at this point he’s the creator of it.

“He would have told us for sure if he was coming.” Seungmin hollered out to the ones still talking about Minho’s appearance. Jisung doesn’t understand the almost argument about it all. So what if he comes back? He’ll probably leave again due to family stuff and no one will see him for a good while. That bothers Jisung enough that he won’t say anything out loud.

“You seem quite, more than usual.” Jisung made eye contact with Hyunjin.

“Just because I don’t wanna put a word in on an dead end conversation doesn’t mean anything.”

“I didn’t say it did.”

“Whatever.” Hyunjin hummed at the response then jingled keys in his face, “Let’s go get settled in before they make us be nice to the newcomers.” Jisung followed Hyunjin to the elevator while he tried to answer to days old unanswered text messages from his mother. I’m okay at least.

“Well would you look at that.” Jisung looked up from his reading to see what got Hyunjin speechless. He made eye contact with the man of the hour. Lee Minho himself. He walked up to them with a foolish grin, “Hey, guys.”

“So you actually did come.....you won’t leave this time, right?” Hyunjin greeted him into a hug and Minho laughed, “Hopefully not.” Jisung didn’t knowledge the little smile Minho gave him, it will only hurt.

“You two should go greet the others I’ll bring our stuff up to our rooms.”

“You sure, Jisung?”

“Definitely.”

“Okay, you big.....weirdo. Let’s go, Minho!” Hyunjin wrapped an arm around the oldest and lead the way back to the others. Jisung hurried into the elevator with shaky hands trying to press buttons. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! He wasn’t ready for that. Not that soon at least. The elevator took him up and once he got to the room’s door he opened it with hurry, though his shakiness helped nothing. Once in he threw bags inside with himself, his body naturally sunk itself down the door frame. He hid himself away in his knees, shakily his controlled the heavy breathing leaving his mouth. The vibrations of his phone stop the mini panic attack from forming.

“Hello?”

“Oh thank god! Jisung, why didn’t you answer any of my messages? You had me scared to death over here, young man.”

“Sorry.....it was a long drive here. I finally got internet today.”

“That doesn’t explain why you weren’t home for the other days. I know you were by Chan’s house, his mother told me.” Jisung sighed with his head still in his knees, “I’m sorry.”

“Your dad is too.”

“Don’t- do not speak for him.”

“Talk to him, Jisung. He’s still your father!”

“He made it pretty clear that I’m not his son anymore, mom. If he was really sorry then he would have talked to me first.”

“Jisung.....”

“Sorry, I have to go. I love you, bye.” He quickly hang up. Him and his father’s relationship is kind of a long story that can be told another day. Just a little hint for it all, his dad is an asshole.

----------------------------------------------

Later on in the day everyone settled tired out in their assigned rooms. That only lasted for so long until Changbin thought it would be a good idea to have an reunion for Minho. They all have seen each other before the summer started and even days before the program started. This reunion is just excuses to show off his new gaming console he got as a graduation present. It came with an classic game that everyone can play, Mario Kart.

"Move, Peach!"

"Suck it, Toad!"

"Blue fucking shell?!?"

"I swear to god, get your ass out the way Wario!" Since Changbin only has four controllers, Jeongin, himself, Felix and Woojin played. The rest just watched and made little side conversations while they waited for a turn, except for Jisung. He's only in the main living room becuase he can't say no to the others. He wants to so badly go back upstairs to watch something on the TV but instead he found himself in the furthest corner of the couch staring into nothing. His mind wander around itself. Trying to stay on one problem at a time, Jisung wants to be anywhere but here.

"Hey idiot! It's your turn!" Jeongin toss the controller Jisung's way, his daydreaming fell short. He moved closer to the screen and picked his favorite character, Yoshi.

"I was gonna pick him." He heard a little side comment next to him.

"Tough shit."

"So quite. So rude." Minho huffed out a little giggle and Jisung did his best to ignore the sound. It will only hurt him.

"Don't throw red shells backwards!" Everyone knows how Jisung gets during video games. It's the only time they get reactions from him. Chan kept quite in first place, Seungmin crashed into an another wall, and Minho threw another red shell backwards.

"I'm gonna kill you."

"Dodge it!" Another shell made contact with Yoshi and Jisung ever so calmly threw the controller on the couch with rage.

"Don't be a baby! Finish the race, Jisung."

"Tell him to leave me alone then." Jisung sat back in the corner and Minho grabbed his controller to place him in fifth, his own character finished in last. The next four played.

"You can get really mad." Minho found his seat next to Jisung, "I forgot."

"Whatever." Jisung settled further away from him in the couch keeping his attention on his phone.

"Did anything change since I've been gone?" Minho kept the conversation going and Jisung tried to keep it short, "No."

"You're still the same too."

"How would you know? You barely see any of us to even know our eye colors at this point."

"I know yours are dark brown."

"Whatever."

"I'm gonna teach you how to use other words this summer."

"Oh really? Before you leave again?" Jisung sighed the past part and Minho tsked, "I'll show you the wonders of different responses."

"Can't wait until this summer is over now."

“You won’t be able to get rid of me still.” Minho smirked making Jisung clench his jaw avoiding the others stare hesitantly, “Yeah um...whatever.”

"You did it again."

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