#i may have forgotten some stuff but it was a pretty short live

[cynopter]

Orange Peels on Fire: aka Townsend lore

because someone asked: here's a big dump of stuff about the story Townsend is from, i.e. the narrator of Choker!

Major TW for suicide/hanging, and obviously OCD.

Also, heads up that it's a really silly, REALLY emo story about ghost hunting lol.

Townsend is the deuteragonist of a (really extremely unfinished) story I had, that was provisionally called Orange Peels on Fire (opof). I started working on it when I was watching a lot of Demon Slayer, and it was basically my attempt to create a cast of shounen anime characters who were all girls but look exactly like the typical shounen anime protagonists. (I mention Demon Slayer because I took a LOT of inspiration from that - at times I described it to people as a shitty lesbian Vietnamese Demon Slayer knockoff... wow it's like it was made for me!!!)

A lot of lore is super wishy-washy because I did like the OG concept art in 2021, then I just kinda fucked around until 2022 when I revamped it for a screenwriting class. I don't really consider either version more canon, but I did a lot more work on the screenwriting version so I'll just describe that :P

Setting

It's set in post-apocalyptic US (either Virginia or like California but I couldn't commit because I've never seen California). A lot of the human population is gone - old civilization is being reclaimed by nature and the surplus oxygen means that there are also giant bugs now who take a lot of the niches previously held by mammals (like mice, dogs, deer etc). The oxygen is also how I campily explain away people being able to do epic anime jumps and stuff lmao. This, plus global warming, also means that the middle of North America now has a sort of tropical climate.

The part that actually matters is everyone in the US lives in tiny villages created out of suburban neighborhoods, and they're constantly having Ghost and Monster Problems of some nature because society has forgotten how to properly bury the dead --- and also because that apocalyptic event 100-or-so years ago caused so many ghosts to be created.

Phượng Lê

The protagonist is Phượng Lê, an 18 year old girl who can see ghosts. She's a triplet, with a living brother (Thanh) and a stillborn sister (the titular Cam / "Orange") who she's always seen as just a normal sister because she's a ghost that lives with them.

(All three of these characters are from a depressing realistic fiction short story I wrote, which I personally consider to be their "true" versions, but I imported them into this because I thought it'd be stupid and funny to turn a story like that into a shounen anime lol)

This is what Phượng looks like! (modern on left, old on right)

She's struggled with depression her whole life, partially because everyone thinks she's a sad and delusional pyromaniac for acting like she has a living sister (whose bones she keeps in a box) and for burning stuff to send it to her. Because of that she puts a LOT of stock in Cam's happiness because keeping Cam's ghost kind of cost her everything (including her parents abandoning them etc).

Cam's remains get stolen one day and long story short, Phượng and Thanh end up traveling around the country trying to solve ghost problems, scooby-doo style, in pursuit of the person who stole them. There's like a different category of ghost every time, based on Vietnamese folklore. (And if you're wondering, Cam's bones are valuable because stillborn baby remains can be used for evil magic, which is of course what the evil people in this story want to do).

That finally brings us to...

Townsend! (aka May Hoàng)

Townsend has pretty different lore between 2021 and 2022, but again I'm going with the latter because I've spent more time on that.

In the story:

She's a self-proclaimed "evil ghost" who haunts a tree at the edge of town. Phuong comes to her to ask if she's seen Cam; Townsend is surprised to meet a human who's friendly to ghosts.

She lightly antagonizes P & Th (in what is later revealed to be an attempted suicide-by-cop type thing) and runs away from them a few times before finally deciding to join their team. (In some versions she has to pretend to be human to deceive Irene, the secretly evil lady helping P & Th out).

Originally I had her birth name as Townsend - in the most recent iteration, this is a nickname Phượng gives her through this miscommunication:

She's the only member of the team who can actually, you know, touch ghosts? (Except when Phuong goes all danny phantom on their asses but I don't need to get into that).

Despite this, and despite the fact that she constantly threatens to kill people*, she basically bursts into tears at the thought of enacting violence on people/ghosts, so she ends up just serving as their strategist **(as the only one who isn't kind of dumb lol).

* Her catch phrase is basically "Don't touch me, i'll kill you." This is really emo lol, but what you find out eventually is this is actually a warning and not a threat.

**Specifically, because Thanh is the only one with absolutely no ghost powers, he has to use weapons made by Phuong, and because Phuong is like the main character, Townsend and Thanh have to work together to strategize & fight in the background. That's a whole arc because Townsend is a coward who doesn't want to be in fights, and Thanh doesn't trust Townsend because she constantly threatens to kill him and Phuong. Fair, I guess.

Townsend's backstory:

She's supposed to be this fundamentally irrational character, who eventually becomes a love interest of Phượng (they're both lesbians) but still never brings herself to stop antagonizing her whenever they get too close. After months and months of working together, Phượng finally gets Townsend's backstory:

She was originally a 17-year-old girl named May Hoàng, who lived in a town next to Phượng's. She suffered from something that we would in modern times describe as OCD, but had since been forgotten by society because of the apocalypse (rip). Her family was Catholic, and they didn't think much of her earlier obsessions (except that she was being annoying), but when she confided in them about her newest obsession about dropping and strangling her baby brother, Meri, they confided in the church - and eventually all the townsfolk came to believe she was being influenced by the devil.

May's parents kept trying to work with her, but eventually she ran away to hang herself.* In some versions, instead of going through with that, she conveniently gets attacked by a hangman ghost (which is how I really loosely translated ma thần vòng) right before that, who strangles her and she still dies. Fun!

*This is what's described in the beginning of Choker. In the original version, she runs away on the back of a giant-giant american millipede, as depicted on the cover, and that becomes kind of a faithful steed that they can all ride around on later.

Either way, what she didn't realize (I guess because she's Catholic) is that if you hang yourself and nobody finds your body, you turn into a hangman ghost, and can only pass on if you strangle a living person to take your place.

So..... obviously that's not going to happen.

Phượng & Townsend

May died about a year before the story starts. She was kind of hoping Phượng could just exorcize her, but because it takes about 3 seconds to realize May isn't actually a threat, Phượng refuses to do that.

Instead they kind of fall in love (shipname Phuongsend if you're wondering lol), and they eventually figure out she's just mentally ill and reinvent ERT or something.

Meanwhile, because of both Cam and May, the whole team is looking for a way to turn ghosts back into living people. I never decided if they actually succeed, but honestly I don't think they ever will. May committed suicide and that's just not something you can undo.

As foils

They both care a lot about each other, but that's despite (or maybe because of?) some very conflicting values. There's a little undercurrent of each trying to change the other's morals.

Phượng's mother abandoned her and Thanh because of her obsession with her sister, Cam, who was stillborn and never even got a chance at life. She's only leaving home now to find that sister and maybe even bring her back to life.

From Phượng's perspective, May HAD a shot at life, and somehow thinks she has the right to get it back even after squandering it. May also loves her baby sibling to death, but her idea of protecting him was to run away forever --- and to Phuong, that's just about the worst thing you can do to someone you love.

They were both treated as heretics, but Phượng reacted by getting a superiority complex and starting to hate everyone, while May still thinks everyone is fundamentally good, except herself. Phượng is (technically) a younger sister and constantly pushes back against Thanh's overprotectiveness, something May sees as disrespectful and scary, as an older sister who spent years obsessing over Meri's safety. Finally, Phượng's violent tendencies/occasional anger issues are something May sees as a big moral problem.

And.... that was a LOT. I'm not sure if I'll keep this post up honestly because there's still like a TINY chance I'll adapt this into something. But for now enjoy the lore dump :P

#my posts #my art #opof #townsend #phuong #rch #i really meant to put this on my main blog but oh well #also not to be serious on this post but i finally just got my official ocd diagnosis irl lmao

[mediocre-shark-tales]

Qsmp x Streamer reader (3)

Summary - You find comfort with Tallulah, she loves hanging out with you when you are on. You also have hung out with Foolish and his silly eggs as well. However recently you have seen some wanted lists drop on the QSMP twitter.

Warnings - None for this part

There is a chance for this to turn into a love trope of some kind but for now there is focus on fluffy platonic-ness

This series will not be 100% lore accurate, but it will be pretty close to it. If certain people don't log on soon, I may change things around until they do actually log on.

Masterlist

I logged onto the qsmp server, for the last few minutes I was just chatting with my viewers. This was my first stream now living in London, merely a short drive away from most of my friends. Tommy and Tubbo had been here yesterday to help me finish moving in. Even Wilbur had stopped by after them, which was perfect timing as I was trying to put my books up on this shelf that I could barely reach. Even though I was trying to be a good host and continue doing the work myself. Wilbur snatched the books from me and put them on the shelf, while telling me that "it's okay, this is just a small way I can contribute to help you move in. Especially since I won't be around for a bit still." That was the few free hours he had before he would need to go off and finish some more work for a billion other things.

Wilbur and I were really close among my friends, we were able to bond over our similar music taste, video editing and many other smaller things. He had been really happy to see that I got into this film school not only because I would be much closer and on his time zone, but also because I was finally somewhere that would help me reach my personal dreams.

Right now my main problem was getting myself acquainted to the new time zone. Wilbur had left behind a few different medical drugs, teas and such that had helped him sleep in the past.

Anyways, as my world loaded I found myself chilling in my pirate ship house. I left the captain quarters and ran into my little hut. Switching to my shark mode and swimming down the long tunnel. Down in the basement, I grabbed a few gifts from my chests. Along with the stuff needed to help the gift receiver keep said gift. Then I checked who was online, a small smile creeping on to my face as I left the basement.

Once I was on land I slowly made my way to the ocean surrounding my island. Being in shark mode on land made me a lot slower than others. Once I was in the ocean I swam back to the main island. Then I switched back to the non shark mode and ran across the island. Sprinting as quickly as I could to the spawn. Here I stopped by the bakery to turn in a few items and getting cookies in return.

I liked to have extra cookies to help out anyone who asked or any eggs that had been accidentally forgotten about. Gotta keep the baby's alive. I then sprinted to the way stone and tp'ed over to tallulahs house.

Once I got there, I knocked on her door. However seconds later I could hear her flute as she began to play her iconic tune. usher playing just above me. Looking up I saw tallulah dancing and playing her flute. In the next second she jumped off her balcony and slowly fell down using her glider.

"Hey Tallulah, I brought you a gift today!" Thanks to my qsmp lore, they had added a few mods that added more ocean and lake animals. This helped to expand my business of collecting underwater necessities. A few days ago Tallulah had told me she really liked a few of the new fishes and the crabs. So I decided to collect her a few along with the necessities needed to make her a couple big fish tanks. She needed more than one cause some of the mobs would eat the other mobs I got for her.

She placed down her sign and asked what it was. "Well remember that time you told me you thought a few of the new fish and crabs were cute?" She nodded. "I got you all the ones you like, so we can build a couple personal fish tanks where ever you would like!" In a reaction of excitement she did the flipping emote and then quickly started to dance as well. I laughed and began to dance with her as well.

I heard talking begin to increase in volume as the person got closer. "Hey y/n! Hi Tallulah!" Yelled foolish as Leo followed behind him. Leo waved at me and I have back. "Hey Leo and Foolish!" "What are you up to today?" Foolish asked. "Well I brought a few fish and crabs for Tallulah so I was going to build her some fish tanks." I heard a gasp from him. "That sounds awesome, would you get me some fish if I asked too?!" I laughed. "Of course I would! Especially for the right price. Your timing is great actually, cause since I'm so new the only thing I ask for as a trade is anything that might be useful for me." I told him. "Like what do you mean by that?" He asked, while Tallulah placed down a sign I continued.

"Well on day one Phil brought me that waystone or the grappler or even the glider. So he definitely has a few jobs he can ask from me in the future if he needs anything." Foolish responded in an understanding. "OOOOOOOOH that makes sense." Tallulah finished typing and I read her signs. "Okay we can build a mini aquarium with your turtles." I said with a smile. "I can help excavate a new room for that if you would like the help." Foolish offered.

"Okay that would be great! Let's go!." We quickly ran over to the turtle heaven and watched Tallulah mine out a hole exactly where she wanted the door to be. "alright Tallulah, foolish and I will carved out the room, we will make it three blocks high. You can mine the floor and replace it with whatever floor style you want." Tallulah nodded and we got to work. Foolish and and had planned out the width and length of the room, easily getting to work on it without disruption. "Hey y/n have you seen the wanted posters on the QSMP twitter page?" I smiled, I had heard about this and was excited since this was my first qsmp event. It would also be the first time I got to drop some real lore.

This lore was not meant to be understood right away, after all this was just the beginning of my part in this story. Everyone's wanted posters were hilarious but still made sense for each person. However mine was the most interesting, seeing as I was the only one without any 'crimes' this of course made sense since I had just gotten here a few days ago. But still this didn't make it interesting, it was the fact that all the words on my wanted poster had been 'tampered with'. Besides my stream name, all the words had been written in code. My picture obviously must have had my Minecraft skin in the orange prison jumpsuit, except it was hard to tell since most of it had been scribbled out in black ink. On top of this black was red ink that wrote one word... mirar.

Of course I had to keep all this lore under wraps until the event finally got started. Fans were already theorizing so I had to keep a watch on everything I said and did. No story was ever successful if you gave away too much too fast right?

"yeah I have seen them." I replied to Foolish. "Obviously we must be going to prison for this next even then right?" I pretended to think for a moment. "Yeah I guess, unless maybe we are now just on the run from the feds for a bit or something like that?" We almost had the whole room excavated now. "Yeah I guess that could also be a possibility." Foolish agreed. I could almost hear the cogs turning as he went quiet again. I knew he may ask about my photo, so behind the scenes where my viewers would have no idea what I was doing. I switched to my other screen and typed out a warning to foolish on discord. It read, 'Do not bring up my wanted poster, don't say anything about it. I was told by the admins I could not spoil anything more than what they had done. So just don't talk about it as a safety precaution.' After clicking send I spoke again, trying to hint for him to look at our chat without actually saying it. Thank god, a few days ago I had come up with a code word and told everyone, if I say this word in any sentence you are to not question it and do what I ask as it is lore related.

I know, why would you ever think to come up with an idea like that? Well my admin friend had been talking to me that day, complaining about how hard it is to keep lore between streamers apart so that even the streamers would get a fun experience learning lore about their friends when the fans would. When I asked him to explain it more in depth, I realized that the main problem was keeping streamers from asking about another streamers lore. Especially in moments like this where it was going to be a small innocent question. Thus I made a code word, sending it out to all the current players that had been getting on the server recently. My code word was shark, I know classic me loving shark stuff. Anyways, if I ever say the word shark in a sentence and it is not related to explaining my shark-mer-mode, then that means they need to not question whatever I am asking them.

"Hey foolish wanna see this cute yet oddly kinda creepy shark baby?"

"uh yeah sure."

"Cool I'll send it on discord."

So I sent him an actually picture of a cute yet oddly kinda crepey shark baby. but right below it I had typed out,

'in case your chat asks to see the photo here is what I was talking about, but I only did this to make sure you didn't ask about the photo like I told you in the previous message.'

Of course he made sure to just talk about the picture, showing his chat when they asked. Of course I hd showed mine too when they asked.

Finally after a few more minutes, not only had we excavated the room, we had also helped tallulah change the walls and ceiling to match the vibe she wanted. Now I could get to work not the two huge tanks that would be on opposite side of the room. I gave foolish the items he need to make one tank while I made the other. My tank would be a hemisphere, but much closer to half an oval than half a circle. Foolish was going to do a tank that was too wide and the length of the wall.

In my tank was all the necessary plants and water for a few blue crabs and lion fish. The other tank would hold some more fun looking tropical fish and a few seahorses. With my tank, I had to add a small feeding system as the crab mod they installed required players to give caught fish to feed crabs and keep them alive. I told tallulah when to do it and how to restock. Also telling her that if she ever needs more and fast, that I would always drop any plans to get her some.

Finally with the room complete, I filled the tanks with water and placed the respective animals in their respective tanks. Then closed them up and admired our work. "This looks sick tallulah!" I heard foolish say. Leo instantly placed a sign and wrote in Spanish. 'Estoy de acuerdo, esto es increíble.' which translates to 'I agree, this is incredible.' Talullah simply replied with a 'thanks for the help'. I placed down a chest next to the crab tank and filled it with a few extra fish restocks, before we left to go on another random adventure together.

To be continued...

#qsmp fitmc #qsmp bbh #qsmp foolish #qsmp tubbo #qsmp #wilbur soot #empanada #x reader #qsmp tallulah #qsmp chayanne #qsmp sunny #tubbo #philza

[sp-ud]

My theories so far for "Generation One: The Social Experiments" of Generation Loss. (And also just a bit of a recap of all the confirmed things I'm aware about Gen 1)

(This is so long. If you read all of this I love you.)

Also, I wrote this May 1st/2nd, before the keynote. I will likely be adding stuff about the keynote either in a reblog to this post or a completely new post which I'll edit a link to or something)

So ever since the name "The Social Experiments" was announced, it became clear to me this was going to be something that we the audience, would be able to have influence on. To some extent.

This was then further solidified by things like Ranboo mentioning that Gen 1 would take place on his Twitch channel, talking about how important it would be to be there when it happened live, and during his Cult of the Lamb stream, mentioning how chat should familiarize themselves with using Twitch extensions to vote.

And of course, T_2: The Inauguration being a short "choose your own adventure" thing also made this pretty clear. Like a test run for the full event. And speaking of T_2, a quick run-through of that. (Because I finished summarizing the new stuff before I realized, shit that video is also probably still important, but the post is already so fucking long)

All of the videos take place on an old TV with static heavily in the background and white text appearing on the screen, "Welcome. You have our attention. Please ensure you are alone. There are precautions in place. The inauguration is necessary. Prove your worth. Please remain emotional. Act upon first impulse."

And then you are asked "Cats or Dogs?", this question doesn't matter. The result is the same, "Now you understand what this is. Next evaluation. Which is best. Power or Wisdom?"

"Power" leads to a failure, reading "Wisdom becomes power. Your input is no longer wanted. Then the camera backs away from the TV, before it vanishes and the words "Try again" appear on screen, before a bombardment of text appears on screen.

"Wisdom" leads to "Impressive. Wisdom is vital. Which will prevail. Life or death?"

"Life" is another fail, "Optimism makes one naive", before going into the same failure screen as before.

"Death" leads to "Intresting. Let's test that." Before cutting to a screen of a person who's face is obscured with a box of static struggling tied to a chair

"You or them?"

You, "Noble yet foolish." Before failure clip.

Them, the person struggles for a bit before going limp, the censor changing to just black, "Did you make sure you were alone? Yes or No?"

No, "You should have." Fail.

Yes, "Good. One final request. Don't Look away." Then the GenLoss logo as it's pictured above slowly fades in, before vanishing and the text reading "Congratulations." appears. There's a few more seconds of just a blank static screen before in red text in the bottom corner pops up reading "Your failures have not forgotten"

So, at this point, all I really had for theorizing was: Somehow the audience will be able to influence the events that happen. And that's about it.

But luckily, the "Connecting..." teasers came out and there was finally more to work with! Yippee!

So the first one Connecting... is a 30 second video of a cassette tape with the letters "TSE" written on it, heavy visual static over it, with some bopping kinda ominous music over it, before a short jingle plays and we hear "If you have any information on these individuals, don't hesitate to call. We thank you for your cooperation during these times" followed by a sound that reminds me of someone turning off some kind of old tech, or hanging up a corded phone.

Not that much to work with other than that there's a group of people who are being looked for, for some reason. Also the "TSE" is likely short for "The Social Experiments" aka, the name of Gen 1.

Also, in the description, there's binary that when translated reads "From one to another", not really sure what to do with this bit of info yet.

Then we get the second Connecting... teaser, which was just this image.

My initial thoughts on this, ripped straight from my Twitter are: "I think what's happening in-universe is that whatever audience roll we'll be playing, will think what's happening is just a show with no serious consequences. But what we influence will have real serious impacts on the safety and life(s?) of the participant(s).

And the crossed-out thing makes me think of like. An office building. So maybe that's whatever organization is behind this broadcast, and they're lying to their viewers about what's really happening.

And who's made these sticky notes? They obviously know more than they probably should. And are going to somehow try to stop whatever is happening. From happening. Did they used to be a part of this group? Are they someone who was supposed to be a victim but escaped?"

And at least one part of this got answers in the currently most recent video, Connected.

The first chunk of the video is red and black static with the word "Connecting..." before cutting to a black screen reading "Welcome" before some more bopping but ominous music kicks in and the screen changes to some sort of infinite tunnel filled with red light.

A bunch of text flashes on screen, in order it reads: "Look into infinity. You are now worthy. One of many." this order repeats 3 more times before more is added after One of many. "One of millions. One to another. One to yours. One to another."

After this text vanishes, The image I put at the top of this section fades in, before cutting to a bright red screen with white text in the corner reading "GEN 1"

Then fades in the image from the Twitter "Connecting..." teaser, the static from the image slowly fading. We get a brief flash to this screen:

Before it cuts to the images from before, but now with missing posters taped up for a currently unnamed character (I'm not calling him Ranboo until it's confirmed the character is called Ranboo.)

There's also tape connecting the posters in the "GenLoss 4 Logo" shape, unsure if that means anything or is just a wink nudge nudge to the audience.

The missing posters feature Ranboo's character, what vaguely resembles the logo that was crossed out with "LIES" written under it next to the word "MISSING", and a phone number to call if you have any information.

According to @/alphiebeet in the replies to the video's link on Twitter, calling the number on the missing posters gives you this message:

"Hello. thank you for calling the Showfall missing person's hotline. We appreciate your call, but you are not able to help us. Please hang up immediately."

The audio in this section sounds like nearby a relatively active street, including a car honking and some birds.

The video cuts to this image for a split second

A much clearer look at what this office-building esc logo looks like, along with 05 03 23 written near it. It looks like the same wall as the other images and even uses the same type of black tape, even though it doesn't seem to be close to the other images and the missing poster.

The screen fades into white, before the same jingle from "Connecting..." the video is heard and this full logo, now with the company name, Showfall Media, appears;

"We are happy to welcome you to the Showfall Media family. Please join us for our special keynote on May 3rd of your time" is said by the same voice from the "Connecting..." video. But before the video ends, a voice that I'm pretty sure is Ranboo says "There's something going on here."

Wow, okay that was. a lot. And oh goddamn it one second, Ranboo posted on the Behind The Scenes account. It's a clearer photo of the images taped to the wall.

Note: The number is scribbled out because it is no longer the accurate number seen in the video.

For some reason, the one farther right and at the end/start of the GenLoss 4 logo has a black censor over their face instead of just a mask.

Now, onto what I think is going on here. Finally (Ranboo better not post more while I'm working on this I STG. Or say anything while streaming.)

Obviously, Showfall Media is behind whatever The Social Experiments are. Or at least the broadcast which will be whatever is going to be Gen 1. They also for some reason have their own missing person's phone line, and will even put their own logo on missing posters. For some reason.

I think I was right about the person who originally wrote the notes the missing posters were over being an employee of Showfall, who realized what was happening/going to happen is wrong, and decided to try and stop it. And I don't think they're actually missing, I think perhaps they realized Showfall was onto them and went into hiding, and the missing posters are a way for Showfall to try and find them.

Though, I wonder if more people are also trying to stop Showfall, as the call said "Individuals", plural. But that's more something we'll just have to wait and see.

One thing that interests me, is the text in T_2, the binary in the descrip of Connecting, and the text in Connected.

From T_2 the intro text: "Welcome. You have our attention. Please ensure you are alone. There are precautions in place. The inauguration is necessary. Prove your worth. Please remain emotional. Act upon first impulse."

and some of the messages on the failure state: "You were not supposed to fail. Think Different. Try Again. Think harder. Keep going. Do you not understand? Who even are you? Do you think this is just a game? Go back. You are NEVER alone. Do not hesitate."

and of course the end screen: "Your failures have not forgotten"

the binary in the Connecting description: "From one to another"

and the Connected text: "Look into infinity. You are now worthy. One of many." this order repeats 3 more times before more is added after One of many. "One of millions. One to another. One to yours. One to another."

it seems like somehow, people need to prove their worth before... something. Currently I'm thinking it's joining Showfall Media, specifically whatever elite group is the one actually behind the shady shit.

And obviously this group probably isnt small, "one of many" and "one of millions" and an important part of this is connecting to the other members "one to another" "one to yours".

I also think the failure messages and the "Your failures have not forgotten" might hint to some level of time shenanigans, and i think whoever this is might also be Ranboo's character trying to get in with Showfall Media to better be able to stop this broadcast. Possibly this backfired and that's why he went into hiding.

And that's kinda all I really got for now, can't wait for the keynote on the 3rd, cuz I imagine it will be what finally gives us a good grasp on what to expect from the actual stream.

#Generation Loss #Genloss #The Social Experiments #Generation 1: The Social Experiments #Ranboo #Genloss TSE #spud originals #sorry it kinda tripped at the end its cuz my wifi died so i then spent hours away from it (because it was late so i jsut went to bed) #lost my steam :(

[suau-raised-by-corrupted-gems]

Meet our Corrupt Gem pack!

Up first; Fluffy Quartz!

Of course she's our stand-in for Garnet, as she's the "leader" of our little pack! If you've read anything about her; she's pretty got some pretty strong maternal instincts. She's very protective of just about anything smaller than her, but her main protection is her squishy son, Lil Quartz Steven! He makes her corruption a lot more tolerable...

Now since she's a (Y/N) [reader character], everything about her physically is based on the Reader's visuals. So, the fur color, skin color, eye color, horn color and shape, and even TONGUE color is upto the reader. As for the gemstone, it's a quartz by default, but like I said; Reader's choice. Same for the location. [Nowhere inappropriate]

She herself is a weapon. Her brute strength, energy beams, horns. And her temper when her cub is hurt.

May the diamonds have mercy on your soul.

Next up; Tri-Tongue! Our ameythst stand in!

Or Tri-T for short.

Anyway, I couldn't think of a better Amethyst stand in than this thing; it's three-pronged tongue is perfect for dragging in food, and it's chaotic energy it displayed [I.E. "The Kindergarten Kid" where it seemed to just be dancing and vibing to nothing, and how it was quick to trample peri after a brief kick to the face and running around like the road runner] so it only seemed proper to make her a stand-in to our spunky purple sister gem.

She still has this chaotic spunk, and is more then willing to give lil Quartz a piggy back ride or two, and may or may not be responsible for raiding the big Donut dumpsters on a regular basis. Since lil Quartz loves to tag along with her on uncharted adventures, she's gotten under Centi and Fluffy's skin a fair amount of times, but they remain patient with her since she's long since forgotten that she was corrupted.

...yeah, I didn't know what to change about her. I plan to have her covered in flowers, have her legs strung up in various accessories n' junk, all of that stuff.

Her "weapons" are her tongue(s) and her talons. Her speed may also be an effective ability; since she could either break your legs, or evade you.

Finally, our pearl stand in: Centipeetle!

Aside from the beaks, she seemed like a pretty good fit.

She's anxious like pearl was, and is always on the look out for the Crystal Gems Gem Poofers, and as a result she doesn't sleep often. She enjoys her time sunning, naps and teaching lil Quartz how to defend himself.

And she might have some feelings for Quartz Reader. And since reader is still present; there's no hard feelings towards lil Quartz. If anything, he's just not too good at listening.

Now, the only drastic change about her is her face. Trust me, I tried to keep to the eye-in-beak design, but I couldn't do it. It kept coming out more uncanny than it already is, because the beak would be uneven and crooked. It's also easier to convey emotions with this style, because i can't exactly draw proper emotions when the face is inside out(?)

Of course her "weapons" are her acid spit and pincers. And the fact she has the ability to scale walls and change her size might throw a person off. And with her speed and multiple legs, she has the ability to run you over like a freight train.

Team ethic! (Kinda...?)

Centi's responsible for the night watch and training.

TM's responsible(?) for keeping him entertained, curious and cheery.

Fluffy Quartz is responsible for the mothering; feeding, cleaning, making sure he's safe and happy, all of that.

The whole team works together to care and protect the small squishy gemling, only wanting him to live the best life he would with corrupt gems. Being corrupted, they really only expected him to live. No leadership. No fighting big monsters. (by himself) Just... remain alive and happy. With their assistance, of course.

I mean, if they have no sense of direction/purpose with themselves, why should that pressure be on him, right?

#corrupted gems #corrupt gem #steven universe au #steven universe #(y/n) #centipeetle #tongue monster #reader #viewer

[awkward-anomalies]

New OC because I’m ditching the previous idea I had about phobias and stuff, going for something different, something that may or may not be inspired by scp lol.

Name: Anon (pronounced an-in) Age + bday: 26 (12/09/xxxx) Species: unknown (anomaly) Gender + pronouns: Non-binary (They/Them) Powers: telekinesis + environmental manipulation (further explained below)

Anon is a quiet and introverted type, preferring to be alone and only speaking in short sentences most of the time. They’re also independent, just too independent, refusing to ask for help, believing they can do everything on their own. This has caused problems relating to their job, lacking the ability to work in a team as they typically end up doing all the work without giving them a chance or even communicating with them. 

Speaking of their job, here’s a quick explanation of what it's about. Anon works as a paranomalous scientist (a scientist that studies anomalies and anything paranormal) for a company called Paranomalous Labs. Essentially it's a corporation that studies anomalies that have appeared out of “seemingly nowhere” and causing disruption to people’s lives. They dedicate themselves to inventing tools and other things for people to use against anomalies so that they can live anomaly-free lives. Although if things get too dangerous, they may get personally involved.

Back to Anon, they were pretty much raised by the company, well, mostly by one of the managers but save that for another time. Despite growing up there, strangely they remember little to nothing about their childhood. They do have blurry nightmares that seem to take place in Anon’s younger years but Anon kinda just shrugs it off as “forgotten trauma that is best to be forgotten.” This doesn’t stop that little ounce of curiosity however as it may lead to answers to who they are and where they came from. 

Moving onto their powers, I’ll try make this short as this is getting long. They have telekinesis which is self-explanatory but they also have environmental powers, “manipulating” the environment around them. However, it's uncontrollable as it's based on emotions. For example, when they’re angry, things will appear more sharp, pointy and jagged, some objects even shaking as if Anon is holding back throwing them which depending on how angry they are, might happen. 

#oc #myoc #mycharacter #newoc #digital art #paranomalous labs #anon

[toxics-sims-adventures]

~ Trifecta Legacy Rules ~

The goal of the Trifecta Legacy is to go through and experience each pack in clusters of three to get you (me) to quit using the Main Pack that’s always getting used in every save.

It's three parts: CAS challenge, Build Challenge and Legacy Challenge.

~ Freeform style:

1) Randomize an expansion pack, game pack and stuff pack for each generation of the legacy to use for career, hobbies, build and cas. (jamesturner.yt/randompacks) You may end up with a pack you don’t like but you must use some aspect of it within the legacy.  No repeat packs in later generations, unless you don’t own enough packs in any category to finish a full ten gen legacy, in which case, randomize another set for the next gen.

2) Set lifespan to preference. The current generation’s heir may purchase one potion of youth (Or make one in Realm of Magic’s case) to use at your discretion.

If the packs are insufficient in providing necessary items for your Sims to survive, (such as any pack lacking Build items like toilets or beds, or CAS not providing sleep or swimwear) you may also use Base Game items to supplement the generation, but only to supplement what’s missing.

You may reorganize your randomized generation list's generation order but not the packs assigned to that generation. Example, no swapping out fitness stuff to go with snowy escape if that wasn't what was randomized.

3) Depending on your chosen lifespan setting (Short, Normal or Long), your heir must complete at least (One, Two or Three) lifetime aspirations from the provided pack selection from rule one before moving on to the next heir. If there is only one or even no aspirations provided within the packs assigned to that generation, again you may use the Base Game to fill in. 

The introduction aspirations that unlock further aspirations into their category, such as batuu’s Hope VS Order or the Werewolf initiate aspiration, does not count toward this goal, as they’re hiding more, larger aspirations behind them.

4) When the Previous Heir has finished their aspiration(s), the next heir, upon aging up to YA at the latest, must move out immediately with half of the legacy’s simoleon account; preferably to one of their generation’s selected packs specific worlds. Example: Moving out to forgotten hollow for Vampires or del sol valley for Get Famous.

If the packs for that generation do not come with a world, Example: Seasons, then the heir must move to one of the Base Game worlds: Willow Creek, Oasis Springs or Newcrest.

5) Though it takes a bit of research since EA doesn’t label which trait comes from where, Heirs can only take their selected packs’ specific traits supplemented by base game traits. The heir provided with the Strangerville pack having the paranoid trait for example.

6) You may use whatever items are available in the public builds in your neighborhood world but you may not travel outside of your provided world unless it’s within your current generation’s available packs. Example: No going to the spice festival if your current heir doesn’t have access to City Living. Decline any hangouts to those places.

7) Science Babies. If you are going to use Science babies to further the generation for any reason, No having science babies as a single parent. I understand wanting to preserve the pretty genetics of your Matriarch/Patriarch, but it has the unfortunate effect of just copy-pasting your parent sim and all their genetics, such as occult status leading to 100% chance that your sim’s child will be just like their parent, which is no fun.

~ Chronological (Or Time Traveler) style:

1) Take each pack by release date to relive their order of availability, first expansion pack, game pack and stuff pack.for each generation of the legacy to use for career, hobbies, build and cas. You may end up with a pack you don’t like but you must use some aspect of it within the legacy.  No repeat packs in later generations, unless you don’t own enough packs in any category to finish a full ten gen legacy, in which case, restart the pack list you’ve run out from for the next gen.

Ex. from what I owned when making this challenge, since I didn’t buy all the stuff packs, I’d be starting generation 1 with Get To Work, Outdoor Retreat and Spooky Stuff, instead of Luxury Party Stuff which I now own.

Or reverse the order. Most recent releases to earliest.

All other rules from Freeform remain the same for Chronological or Time Traveler style.

~ Trifecta + style:

Do you also have a selection of kits at your disposal? After randomizing or chronologizing your generation pack lists, select all the kits you own and chronologize/randomize one kit per generation to add alongside the expansion, game and stuff packs available for each generation.

~ Challenge rules to add/change for Difficulty Changes:

+ Start a Base Game Only Prologue Generation before diving straight into the packs.

+ Disable unavailable packs and enable them in the generation’s pack order.

+ Instead of taking half the earnings of the previous generation (when extremely wealthy), only take a starter inheritance of 20k simoleons or even less for increased difficulty.

+ Randomize traits, no trait reassignments allowed.

+ Turn off CC and Mods OR Freely use CC and Mods.

+ Cure occult status and opt out of fame on all heirs once goals are completed. (No vampire heir once vampire goals are completed. No spellcaster afterward. Etc. Potions aside from reward store purchases, deleted. Quit the spotlight once goals are met for Get Famous.)

OR

Attempt to maintain occult and fame status upon new heirs. (Vampire sim has a human child? Ineligible for heir status, no turning allowed. Same for spellcaster with no rite of ascension.)

+ Alien legacy families must maintain a secret identity at all times. Only bff’s and soulmates outside of the family may know. How you maintain that secret is up to you.

+ Your heir may collect one personal inventory storable item (or a singular stack of personal inventory storable items, so long as it doesn’t exceed 99) from previous generations to assist them despite pack specific limitations. (Such as a yoga mat from spa day to assist with parenthood traits in a later generation, or a stack of potions like the potion of plentiful needs.) The tenth generation may carry nine other pack specific items into the start of their generation through this method.

+ Attempt to complete the collections from the Generation’s pack selection and pass those collections down to the next heir.

Have fun

#toxic's sims stuff #cas challenge #build challenge #legacy challenge #all rolled into a weird sims 4 burrito

[worldwright]

Good evening !

Getting into a psych ward in France takes a very long time and all, so imagine when today, 3 months and a half after I was told I was on the waiting list, I learned that I wasn't actually. I wasted 3 months and a half waiting for nothing. The hospital said they were doing all the things for me, because I can't, and then didn't. And nobody apologized when I confronted them about that. So, great.

Fortunately, I was with a friend the entire time (good lord, without her idk where I'd be, she's too kind for this world)

So that's how I ended up buying some jasmine green tea and a figurine of the poorest man alive dead

I fucking needed good things after what I learned today, because how the fuck am I supposed to trust any medical staff now ??? Like, I already had a fear of them, but now ??? It's over

I don't believe in luck, because it doesn't make any sense. What's good luck or bad luck ? How someone can be lucky or unlucky ? Why am I never lucky ? Why do I always get the short end of the stick ? Because that's not luck. Because if it was that means no one is responsible for whatever keeps happening to me. From what they explained to me, it was the fault of the psychiatrist I saw that day. They didn't know about it until I went to the hospital after the call with the psych ward. Because I called them. Because 3 months and a half is a long time to wait.

What a bunch of assholes. They said that they "couldn't do anything other than just putting me for real this time on the waiting list.". I lost 3 months and a half because of someone's fault. And now I am finally at step one.

Waiting. I'm back at waiting. And the only thing I can do is talk to my psychiatrist (bc she works at the psych ward I'll be) and hope that she can do something for me. Which is something she's really, really bad at

So, yep, great day

But at least I ate well and got tea and a Toji ?

Have a wonderful morning my friend !

UGH that makes me so fkn pissed. like about all the things. like why do medical professionals never face consequences. why were there no checks in place to alert them that they'd forgotten to do something. why do they pick on the people who are already obviously less able to stand up for themselves. why do we live in a culture of such individualism that there's no community safety net. and WHY is it so hard to even begin to unravel any of that

toji!!!!!!!!! that's such a cool figure auuuuuuuuuuuu

i'm kind of having a really hard time existing in the present rn... can't really work very much but i can't get myself to do chores either....... at least i'm seeing my family tomorrow. i may just go hang out at their house instead of running errands......... (my mom got covid a few weeks ago so she might like the company now that she's recovered)

sometimes i think about how my consistent sleep, eating, and exercise patterns are probably boosting my mental health a LOT lol. like if i didn't have that built-in routine i would probably be way worse off than i am. helps me keep my motivation to get meds cuz like. i have friends that don't have that consistency and they are doing Not Great

watched the new episodes of dunmesh and heaven official's blessing last night!!!!!!!! thank you senshi for motivating me to finally eat the shrimp tempura in my freezer lmfaooooooo

also i figured out how to torrent stuff. should probably buy an external hard drive if i keep saving shows lmfao

it snowed last night!! only about 1cm, and it only stuck on plants and grass, but it's pretty!!!

hope the rest of your evening is relaxing! (also hi Leo, thanks for talking last night!)

#pen pal #why is my brain built the way it is hey god turn on location i just wanna talk

[ihonestlydunnowhattocallmyself]

A rather overdue review on 'The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy'

I have had the book for quite a while now. While I actually did read it once before that time was quite a while back. As in it feels like more than 5 years. As expected I have forgotten a large part of the book beyond a few plotpoints.

I actually bought it after seeing the film. I never knew it was controversial but seen as separately from the book I thought it was good. Of course I haven't seen the movie in around 4 years and neither do I wish to see it now.

To celebrate this re-read I thought I may as well review the story because hey, I really forgot how short this book is.

Plot:

While extremely simple I think it really gets the job done. And while not much actually happens it does set up a lot questions for what will happen in the future. I rather like this and it makes me curious as I don't remember much of this. I also like how straightforward things feel though I do wish it was allowed to wander and there were more planets shown. Overall Magathrea is a neat concept and all but it'd be fun if they had explored at least 2 more planets.

An 8 out of 10 for me. Pretty basic but it works as intended.

Comedy:

Ok, so first of all, oh my god is this book a laughing riot. And second of all I really just love how it incorporates it into everything. I find it impressive that it was able to incorporate a punchline into the more serious moments like Zaphod revealing that someone had sealed off his brain. It helps add to the absurdity of the adventure. I especially loved chapter 10. Which brings me to my next point:worldbuilding.

Also btw its 10 out of 10 for me.

Worldbuilding

I really loved how many random tidbits were there and how whole pages were dedicated to telling stories about the universe. It helps make the place feel more lived in. And I also like how it subverts the common trope of 'oh the humans are the most important species!' by simply bulldozing earth. While it does sort of thread back with earth being the best computer of all time I still think it doesn't take away from the impact that everyone thought of earth as some backwater planet. I also really loved the story of Deep Thought.

A solid 9 out of 10.

Overall:I think it was really good at being an absurdist comedy. It is a short but really good read and doesn't overstay its welcome. However I wish that it spent more time and the characters could have gone to more planets.

Total score:9 out of 10

I'm going to review a few more stuff here.

#the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy #book #book review #hitchiker's guide to the galaxy book review

[kawa-kir]

"Man, i hope this one goes well." Otto thought, walking to the other side of town, a small 4 stars local restaurant awaits him. His fourth date with Emily should be one to remember.

"Phone, keys, perfume, gift... gift... Oh crap, crap crap Crap!" He stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, a mistake that made his heart pound like a brick, his present was forgotten at home.

"Its ok... calm down... where is the nearest flower shop? No, that was the second date's gift, she'll think im cheap and clichê... maybe sweets? No, she was at the gym last week, dont wanna make her lose progress... think, think, thi- hm?"

His eyes caught a glympse of the old antique store, small jewelry, cute old things...

"maybe " He pondered " they might have something not too expensive. Old stuff is cheap, no?"

A small iron bell rang as the doors opened, the smell of mold and dust was almost as strong as his determination. An old man walked from the back, overweight, walking heavily with his hands covered in dark smudges, probably oil, cleaning with a piece of cloth over them, and a face kind and wrinkly as a grandpa.

"Good Evenin' lad," He grinned, showing a broken tooth " almost closin' for the night so ya got here in good time, how may i help you?" He sat at his little stool.

"Hi sir, um, im looking for a gift?, something not too expensive ya know? Its for a date but im kinda short on money."

"Looking to impress them, yeah? I think i got something for you, what do they like?" The old man said, that nice smile that they give when they see youths in love.

"Well.. um... she likes sports, Soccer, Tennis, and also pop music, Giovan & Mark, you know? Lets see... oh, and roses, red roses, just like her hair..." Otto smilled as her face came to mind.

"Alright champ, i'll get back in a moment, look around if ya want..." he said, disapearing behind the shadows cast by the door, leaving behind the sounds of potery clinking and metal rustling.

The store itself had quite a few things, earings with rubies red as blood and colars adorned with golden chains, how was this old dude living like this with such pretty things on for sale? They all look like if someone broke into the Feitt's vaults or something...

"Oi! Little lad!" The old man returned " Got this box of things me age, hehe! Come take a look!" He brought a large wooden box and sat it in the counter.

As the lid was pulled, the shimering could be seen, even in the dim shine of the broken lightpole.

He pulled a few jewels and trinkets from it, small pretty rocks, earings, some baubles... and a ring.

"How much for this one?" Otto asked whilst examining it, a small golden ring with a tiny ruby carved as a rose, petals so detailed they looked as if written on...

"That one? For you, its free!" he spoke with that smile and a chuckle, another tooth lacking in his jaw. "But you gotta promise me one thing."

"Sure" Otto Shrugged "This is already a steal!" They both laugh.

"Well kid, you remind me a little of meself when i was your age, so here is the deal: dont get it wet, it'll ruin the color, and most importantly, dont let the rose fall off, okay?"

"Sounds easy enough" Otto said with a relieved smile, extending his hand "its a deal."

"Atta boy" The old man shook his hand, covered in sticky oil and one finger missing.

With a ring in his pocket and a smile on his face, Otto rushed from the little antique store with a heartfelt goodbye.

#chapter 1

[uidbmgmt]

Trigger Warning: PTSD, DID, CSA, RA

I’m back, bitches! House sitting in Ohio was just wonderful. My roomie’s family is super nice, open and accepting. Their pets, Connor and Sophie, were such a treat to watch. No issues whatsoever. We were pretty much alone for two weeks, just my roomie, her girlfriend, and I, and we enjoyed the open house instead of a shitty mobile home for once. We were able to sample some of the local food and were able to travel to places we wanted to go.

Sadly some of the places we went to didn’t work out, but that’s okay. Stuff happens and I’m not gonna let it get in my way.

I’m happy to be back now. I got home from the airport at about 11:30 AM, started unpacking my stuff and got thrown smack dab into a full on PTSD flashback. It was terrible, a memory I had forgotten about, or had blocked from me. So I was definitely told by my [redacted] that I was going to hell if I ever told anyone, but since I’m not a good listener, I didn’t listen and I told my parents. They both yelled at the [redacted] while I was in another room, but I could hear their raised voices.

The feeling in my body was powerful. I was fuzzy all over and my head felt like it was going so fast it would just explode. I remember feeling very small in a big, open space, probably the smallest I have ever felt. Being relatively new to the system, I had not felt anything that intense before, it was scary. I feel so sorry for my child alter, because they’ve been sitting on this shit for YEARS. I wish I knew how to help them through this, except to offer hugs and reassurance that it wasn’t their fault and they’re not going to hell.

It took hours to come down from this and it did not go away. I feel so sorry for people who have these intense flashbacks on a constant, because they are gnarly and terrible. I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. I felt so helpless and pathetic under all that burden. My dear, child alter, you are not broken or worthless. You are worth so much love and compassion. You deserve happiness. I will not forget your pain.

I also made a realization! My child alter, Laura Lorraine, and my teenage alter, May Vashal, both feel like boys inside their hearts. They wish they had been able to live life they way they felt inside. I know I can’t redo the past, but I can make the future more comfortable for you. Got a double mastectomy and a hysterectomy in my future. I look forward to it, along with most of the system. I gotta start listening to my heart more instead of just my head.

On a brighter note, I was able to open the many packages I had waiting for me. Half of them were for my friend’s cosplay but I got some goodies. A tote bag, a Moon Knight keychain, wings for my cosplay, and a build a bear we’ll be making for my Bitch Buddy’s bachelorette party this weekend. I have so much going for me right now, it feels almost shameful that I don’t feel the enthusiasm I wish I did. I guess the PTSD flashbacks took a lot out of the system, but important things were learned and I won’t soon forget it.

I hope you all weren’t too bored without me, not like I post much, and I’m happy to be back home amongst my stuff and my friends. Shop is back open now, however commissions will remain closed for a short bit. I’m working on a lot of stuff before Everfree next month and I wanna make sure I finish all that before I even consider opening commissions again. I’ll probably open them back up around Everfree.

Thanks for listening to my story. It helps me to put it out there, maybe I can learn from someone else’s experience, or someone will learn something from me?

#UIDBmgmt #☢️ #tw ptsd #tw did #tw csa #tw religious abuse #vent #i need to be better #I will become what my system needs #they’re so worth the effort

[livingwithlosingyou]

Living with Losing You - 10/17/2022

Last day here for this trip!

These last two and a half weeks have been nothing short of amazing and healing. Between spending time with your family, recording music, and driving country roads blaring music and sitting with my thoughts, I am trying. I think that’s the best way to put it. I have some bad days and good days, and then those days within them have both good and bad moments too. I am sad to leave KY, but I am excited to see my animals. Otherwise, I really do not miss San Diego. I love my family and friends, but I just really have enjoyed being in a newer city and exploring it. I really have a lot to think about. 

I am not sure if I’d live in Lexington, but I could see myself in Louisville. Or Nashville as I have mentioned. I do like Lexington, but it might be too tough to live here full time. It has been nice to visit you though. Helps with the healing process too. 

Today was a busy day. I didn’t run because it was WAY too cold this morning. I am just missing this cold front that is supposed to come in. They said it could get so cold that it might be snowing in the morning. It always happens. I always leave before the snow / or significant changes in weather. 

This morning your mom and I were talking about ancestry, and she started looking into my trees. It was pretty increidble what she was able to find. She asked about my mom’s maiden name / full name, and honestly, I had kind of forgotten. I typed it into Google search to verify, and found something quite unsettling. Those who do not know me personally on here, my mother is an addict and abandoned me as a child, twice. I’ll spare you the other details. Either way, I haven’t had a relationship with her because she isn’t sober and she cannot be trusted. I found out that she made a GoFundMe page about her illnesses, etc. BUT... She used a picture of my brother and I from about 13 years ago. Basically she is exploring my brother and I to get more money. I do not say people are terrible, but she really is a pretty awful person. James, you may have been an addict, but you were a good person. I am giving her a chance to remove it before I report it. Honestly, probably too nice of me. 

I went to a coffee shop / vintage shop this morning to grab an oat milk hot coco and get a few things to bring back home. I also wanted to take my mind off the bull shit that was finding that fundraising page. You took me to that coffee shop when we first went to Lexington in early 2021. 

I went to the Chick-Fil-A across the street afterward, since I hadn’t eaten (besides a scone hours earlier). I made it just in time for breakfast, which I was happy about. They actually have a pretty good GF sandwich, and their hashbrowns are *chef’s kiss*. 

I headed back to the condo to quickly eat and then pack up for the studio. I talked to your friend Brenden (aka bitched about everything) which was nice. It’s been nice to connect with people who you impacted.

When I got to the studio, I wasn’t sure what I would be capable of. It’s been very emotionally exhausting to pour my heart into each of these songs for days in a row. It’s why I had to take Sunday off, it was getting to feel like it was all too much. It’s hard to channel all the different emotions. At the end of the day, I just miss you terribly. Through all the good and the bad, you were my best friend.

Your dad stopped by the studio with one of his other lawyers from the firm, and they got to hear some of the stuff we had been working on. It was nice to see them, and they were excited about it all too. It really is coming along. You’d be so proud. I’m sure you’re watching over me with delight. I always wonder what you think or feel when you see me in my brokenness. There has definitely been a lot of that too. I did notice that while I was recording a cardinal came up to the window and sat there looking in for a little bit. And then at that 5k when I had that very “snow white” moment with the butterfly who I helped take flight again. I feel you all around me, I really do.

We ended up recording two songs today. I’m so excited, cause that makes a total of 4 songs with final vocals! Yay! I do need to figure out a time to come back and finish recording. Thinking maybe December or January for 1-2 extended weekends. Should probably figure that out sooner than later.

I left the studio late (as I have every time) and then got stuck in some fun traffic on the way to your moms condo. I ended up getting back at like 6:20pm, and the reservation was at 7:00pm. We had to drop off your dad’s FJ, so I basically got to the house, dropped of my stuff, gave Biggs some pets, then left.

I got to the house a little before your mom did. I pulled into the driveway and had to leave the keys to the car and the office in the house. I was having issues with the back door (shocker), but finally got into the house. Also has issues with locking it. Your dad has this set up with the picture of you form the funeral and the white coat that I framed. I put the keys on that table, and looked at that picture for a little. I loved you. So much. It actually hurts my heart when I think about it too much.

We then headed to dinner. I’m so glad that most of your family was able to make it out! We went to a chain Italian restaurant out here. Well, small chain. But it was delicious! An evening filled with good conversation and lots of laughs. I love them all. They all loved you so much.

When I got back to the house, I finished packing. It’s truly a miracle that I was able to get pretty much everything into these three bags considering I was here for almost 3 weeks, and bought some stuff. I did have to leave one thing back, but I didn’t need it so it wasn’t a big deal.

Your mom and I say down stairs and talked about you for a little before going to bed. We could talk day after day, it’s really just helping us process it. We will never understand it, but it’s nice to not feel like I can’t talk about you. I feel like that often in San Diego.

Biggie has been super cute with me today, I bet he can sense that I am leaving. Love that cat.

This is so bittersweet. Honestly I really don’t want to go home. Maybe I should look into that more and figure out if there’s more to it than what I’m thinking.

I wish I could have visited your grave one last time before I left, but I just didn’t have time. But I’m glad that I got to yesterday.

Ugh, I miss you so much. Until I see you again, I’ll continue to love you from afar, and I know you’ll do the same. <3

Rest In Peace, James Burton Nichols

You’re my boy, blue.

10/1/1993 - 7/16/2022

[quirkless-accident]

Chaotic mei and danny duo as they scavenge through his ex-parents inventions.

Improves, creates better, anti phantom detection, good for other than ghosts!

EXPLOTIONS!!!! (since i think ectoplasm is highly dangerous without safety measures... Rip power loader)

bonus: note to self; keep her AWAY from the fenton mech suit.

Hey everybody! Sorry for being off the radar for a while, I've been busy with commissions and regular work. This one is pretty short but i had a lot of fun with it!

---------

Danny met Mei through a series of very chaotic events that may or may not have involved a stink bomb gone wrong, mild property damage, and detention every day for a month.

They've been inseparable ever since.

Especially since Danny told her his parents, before they were arrested, created support items as well as ghost hunting equipment.

Most of the ghost hunting stuff was seen as garbage since it didn't really work against anybody but Danny and other ghosts. And since most of the general public of Musatafu thought ghost attacks were regular villain attacks, they didn't think much of it. The attacks were so rare that they were almost always immediately forgotten about.

Which meant that most of his parents inventions, save for the portal, were thrown in the dump.

The dump that he and Mei were currently rummaging through.

He had some blueprints saved onto his computer just in case he ever needed them. His parents had handed them over pretty quickly when he showed a mild interest in ghost hunting. It was one of the only times they had spoken to him as their kid and not just some guy living with them rent free. Too bad that didn't last long.

"What is this?" Mei asked, popping up from her pile of garbage. She was holding up a silver belt with a green, glowing center.

"Specter deflector. Wear it and it creates a shield to protect you from ghosts. Though it doesn't last very long so it's gotta be used sparingly."

"Not when I'm done with it!" She cackled. Danny grinned.

This was going to be so much fun.

----------

After about seven showers and a massive equipment haul later, they hunkered down in the support department after school. Mei had thankfully promised not to work on them without him, so long as he met up with her as soon as he got done with his foundational heroics class and the occasional meet-up during lunch.

Working with Mei came as naturally to him as breathing. They were able to silently work together in tandem, without getting in each other's way. They've only really worked together one other time when Danny needed help fixing his thermos, but just that small experience alone made it so much easier to work with her now. Especially if he was able to get her focused enough to not yell directly into his ear.

They had managed to salvage a bunch of equipment from the dump. Most of it was damaged or just didn't really work well to begin with, but if it had an ectoplasmic power core then they took it.

There were a couple of inventions they just took for the power source and the spare metal. The ghost gabber was one of them. Ghosts already talked like regular people, there was no need for a shitty translator like that. There were about a half dozen wrist rays and ecto-guns. The Fenton Phones were in near perfect condition, and he handed Mei a pair before putting his own on.

"The range on these is amazing," he tells her, and she promises to keep them in all the time, just in case. Danny makes them an official part of his hero uniform, and makes a plan to make a new pair for Aizawa and Mic.

There are a couple other inventions here and there. Some of them are half finished or completely useless so they go ahead and get started with the dangerous stuff.

"Ectoplasm can be pretty volatile," Danny says as he carefully extracts a small vial of concentrated ectoplasm out of one of the ecto-guns. He places it in a small tray sitting between them. "I've got a place at home where I can safely store it, so when we're done rebuilding some of these we can put them back in. We just have to be gentle."

"I can do gentle," Mei says with the confidence of somebody who's fought god and come out the other side.

Danny, unfortunately, has full faith in her.

-----------

So it turns out, Mei cannot be gentle. This is proven by a rather large explosion when she accidentally makes one of the wrist rays go off. It had been pointed at the tray of about a dozen ectoplasm capsules.

Danny, moving on nothing but instinct, threw up a shield to protect them both from the blast. And, while the lab was kind of trashed, they were in one piece. Danny decided he'd call it a win, because the thought of Mei being a halfa like him did genuinely terrify him.

Luckily, Mei had caused the accident when nobody else was there. Which meant nobody else was going to accidentally half-die like him.

Power Loader does come in pretty quickly though, followed by Aizawa and Mic who had been on their way to pick him up to go home. Danny can only stand there, sheepishly, as they take a look around the room. Mei is laughing loudly next to him as she speaks at top volume.

"Wow, Spooky! You weren't kidding when you said it was dangerous!"

"Yeah, it's almost like I grew up around it or something," Danny says dryly as he meets Aizawa's tired gaze. Oh yeah. He's definitely getting another detention for this. Maybe he should have gotten Aizawa's permission to go dumpster dive first before actually doing it.

"I can explain," he says, and they really don't need Tsukauchi in the room to know that he's lying. Mei just laughs harder and claps a hand on his shoulder.

"Once we're done making babies there will be nothing that can stop us!"

Danny lets his head hit the table with a groan. And then groans louder because it's still covered in ectoplasm. And now it's all over his face. He lifts it back up and looks to his guardians.

"Would either of you be willing to push me into oncoming traffic?"

Mic barks out a laugh and Aizawa, with a tired sigh, ducks his face into his scarf to hide the smile Danny knows he has. Power Loader gives them each their own rags without a word.

"I was gone for literally thirty seconds," he mutters under his breath.

"Better get used to sleeping here then," Mic says. "I have a feeling this is going to be a common occurrence."

#danny phantom #danny fenton #power loader #bnha #mha #my hero academia #boku no academia

[h2bakugou]

buss it challenge reactions

a/n: credit for this idea goes to the wonderful and brilliant @milkttea​​ thank you for providing an amazing idea, may these headcanons quench all of our thirst <3 

i couldn’t find any dance creds for this challenge, but if you know the person who started this trend, please let me know!!

all characters aged up 18+ au!!

headcanon: them reacting to their s/o doing the buss it challenge/trend

key: (y/n) - your name / (f/n) - first name / (l/n) - last name / (e/c) - eye color / (h/c) - hair color / (y/q) - your quirk

warnings: swearing, suggestive themes, fluff, no smut but 16+

»»————-　★　————-««

katsuki bakugou

»»————-　★　————-««

He’s already so drawn to you in the outfit your wearing. It’s skin tight, and all your curves are on display for him to see. 

Even more so, the way you’re stretching, preparing for something you wanted to show him, he’s getting a little hot and bothered.

Is it hot in here or just you?

When you select the song and get ready, Bakugou’s eyes can’t leave you. Suddenly you’re dropping to the floor, the lyrics in the song sticking inside his head like the current image of you popping your hips out to the beat.

The grip Bakugou has on the armchair he’s sitting in his most definitely visible to you like the tent in his pants.

“Fuck.” Bakugou whispers, his mouth slightly hung open as he stares at you, still squatting on the ground, dancing.

“Did you like it?” You ask innocently, slowly rising from your position on the floor as you walk over to him.

“Is that the best you got?” Bakugou teases, letting you slide into his lap.

“You tell me.” You lean in and whisper in his ear placing a delicate kiss on his ear lobe.

»»————-　★　————-««

shoto todoroki

»»————-　★　————-««

Doesn’t think much of anything until he sees you stretching. You’d ask him to watch you do a dance, which he was excited for. He enjoys when you show him stuff, even more so if it’s a dance or new trend you’ve seen.

However, in your outfit that defines everything for him, leaving little to his imagination, he can’t help but feel like he’s overheating. 

He’s kicking his right side into overdrive to try and cool himself down.

He remembers seeing you in the outfit once before, right before he peeled it off of you.

But shaking that out of his mind, he watches as you turn on some music and dance.

And then you drop to the floor, popping your ass out as he stands and admires.

You’re bouncing around in a squat before you stand up and smile, asking how you did.

“It was great.” Todoroki’s cheeks are red, and he’s done forgotten about cooling himself down as he approaches you.

“I didn’t know you could move like that.” Todoroki towers over you as you lean against a wall, smiling up at him.

“I can show you some more moves if you’d like.”

“I’d like that very much, baby.”

»»————-　★　————-««

izuku midoriya

»»————-　★　————-««

He’s excited. A new dance trend that you wanted to show him? He’s on the edge of his seat, ready to see you dance for him.

His face goes red when he sees what you’re wearing, and now he’s even more excited.

He can’t help but glue his eyes on you, your curves are on display for him to drool over.

You drop to the floor and his mouth hangs open. You waste no time bouncing and popping your ass out, smiling as you look back up at him, radiating confidence.

You looked so hot, Midoriya was practically foaming at the mouth. He was so in love with you.

“Holy shit.” He doesn’t mean to curse but it just slips out. He’s quickly searching for something to cover the evidence of his attraction to you.

“So did you like my dance?” You ask, a cute smile on your lips.

“I loved it sweetheart!” Deku beams as you walk over to him.

“I’m glad!” You kiss his cheek and sit on his lap. Deku’s green eyes are trained on you as you rest your hands on his shoulders.

“Let me show you some other stuff I learned.”

»»————-　★　————-««

denki kaminari

»»————-　★　————-««

He knows.

He knooooows.

The second he hears the music from you practicing, he’s excited. He’s pacing all over, waiting for you to either send you a video of you doing the trend, or having him watch you do the trend in front of him.

He’s praying for the latter.

And sure enough, you’d asked him to take a break from gaming with the boys so you could show him something. 

Turning in his gaming chair, he sets his mic on mute and watches as you enter the LED lit room wearing something sexy, something that’s making Kaminari begin to short circut.

He’s gripping the handles of his chair as the music begins to play. You drop to the floor and it’s game over. 

boner alert

He can’t help it, you look so sexy, and the confidence you’re radiating is turning him on more, god he loves you so much.

The way you move, the way your hips swing and the jiggle of your ass just sends sparks coursing through him.

He quickly hops back on the mic to tell everyone he had to go.

After, he motions for you to come over to him.

“That was amazing, baby.” Kaminari praises, pressing a kiss to the back of your neck while you sit on his lap.

“Thank you babe.” You smile, rolling your hips teasingly

“Show me some more?” Kaminari asks innocently.

»»————-　★　————-««

eijiro kirishima

»»————-　★　————-««

He learned it from Kaminari. The two send videos back and forth to one another constantly, it’s almost like they were back at U.A.

However, he doesn’t expect the video from you. Kaminari has told him about the trend and shown Kirishima his rendition of it which the two laughed about for a couple of hours.

But when Kirishima gets a notification that you’d sent him a text, he’s blown away at the video of you in something sexy and tight, dancing to this music that he’s heard before.

Sure enough, the video cuts and you’re popping your ass, mouthing the words to the song, smirking and feeling yourself. You looked fine as hell.

Kirishima’s biting his lip unconsciously, praying he gets to see you in this outfit soon.

You’re in the living room, a couple rooms away from him. He quickly leaves to go see you, standing in shock as he looks at you, still in the outfit.

“Damn, beautiful.” Kirishima tosses his phone onto the couch as he walks over to you, climbing to hover over you on the couch.

“Did you like it?” You smile innocently.

“Let me show you just how much I enjoyed it.”

»»————-　★　————-««

tamaki amajiki

»»————-　★　————-««

Like Kirishima, he sees the trend going around through Mirio. And he receives a video of you doing it.

You send him the video nervous about his reaction. But have no fear, for he is absolutely stunned.

Watching you move so smoothly, and to wear something so tight and revealing, he’s salivating over you, blush on his cheeks as he watches the video over and over again.

He can’t get you out of his head as he stares at you dropping to the floor and bouncing your ass.

He hears a soft knock on the door and fumbles to pause the video on constant repeat.

“Hey bunny.” Tamaki is glad he’d only said two words because you’re still dressed as you were in the video. You must’ve just filmed it.

“Hey baby.” You saunter over to him and set yourself on his lap, running your fingers through his hair.

“Did you like my video, I tried my best for you.” You kiss his forehead and smile.

“I-I did. It was good.” Tamaki knew you could feel something poking your thigh as you sat over his legs.

“Oh yeah?” You tease, pulling his head back slowly by his hair. You plant a gentle kiss on his lips and smile.

»»————-　★　————-««

mirio togata

»»————-　★　————-««

Completely aware of this trend. But he doesn’t expect you to do it. 

But he’s absolutely stunned when you sit him down after begging him to take a break from work.

You’re dressed in something new and sexy, something that hugs your figure tightly and leaves little to his imagination.

“Just watch okay?” You smile and give him a quick kiss before turning on the music, swaying your hips as you get into position.

And then he hears it, the tune he was familiar with.

His eye are glued to you as you drop to the floor, squatting and bouncing your ass, smiling as you stare at him, confidence radiating off of you as you do your best.

It’s amazing, he’s so happy he took a break. He wouldn’t want to have missed this for anything.

His pants grow tight but he ignores it, insisting to keep his focus on you until you stand back up and stride over to him.

“Whatcha’ think?” You ask, kneeling in front of him, resting your arms on his legs.

“It was amazing, sunshine.” He ruffles your hair, staring at your pretty pink lips.

“I’m glad you liked it.” You run your hands up his thighs and smirk.

»»————-　★　————-««

hawks/keigo takami

»»————-　★　————-««

This fucker- i swear-  he is the epitome of the fucking smirking & winking emoji

HE KNOWS.

He probably sends the challenge to you begging you to do it.

You cave and decide to spice it up a little extra just for him, wearing something sexy and flashy for his eyes only.

Even more, you do it for him in person, which was unexpected.

He’s sitting in the plush red chair that has several memories stained into. You enter the room wearing a red sheer robe revealing everything ‘hidden’ underneath.

The music begins to play and you start by innocently removing the robe and tossing it aside before dropping to the floor and committing to the trend.

Squatting and bouncing your ass, you smile seductively as you begin to feel the rhythm of the song, doing just as you’d seen in the videos you used for tips on how to do the trend.

You were a natural, and Hawks was paying very good attention to you. His amber eyes never left you until you finished, and even then the only darted to the growing tent in his pants.

“How’d I do?” You ask, prancing over to him with a big smile on your lips.

“You blew my mind, baby bird.” Hawks pats his lap for you to sit down.

You know what’s coming next and so does he.

»»————-　★　————-««

dabi

»»————-　★　————-««

Has zero clue what you’re about to do, and probably thinks you’re just gonna wanna watch a movie and make out or something. I mean why else is he on the couch with mood lighting on?

Doesn’t realize you’ve even entered the room until he hears music. He looks up from his phone and nearly loses his mind.

You’re wearing something sexy and revealing, the clothes hugging your figure just right, driving Dabi crazy.

He can tell you’re feeling yourself, the confidence radiating off of you is palpable as you sway your hips to the tune of the music until you drop into a squat, popping your ass out as you dance around.

“Alright, baby.” Dabi whispers, leaning back into the couch as you continue, mouthing the words and definitely looking at him.

The eye contact was feeding Dabi’s praise kink, you knew you were owning whatever it was you were showing him.

When the music fades out, Dabi’s wearing a shit eating grin as he stretches his arms out over the back of the couch.

“Didn’t know you could move like that, baby.” Dabi’s low voice send shivers down your spine as you walk over and take a seat on his lap.

“So you liked it?” You lean in and kiss the tip of his nose, smiling back at him.

“Oh I loved it, gorgeous.”

»»————-　★　————-««

tomura shigaraki

»»————-　★　————-««

If you can peel him away from his video game, good job. You’ve got his attention for a few seconds before he mumbles something about needing to defeat the boss and-

He’s frozen when he sees your skin, revealed in something sexy and red that matches his ruby eyes.

It’s skin tight and showing off your beautiful figure that Tomura praises on the daily.

“What’s this about?” Shigaraki rasps, actually paying attention to you now. You just smile and give him a quick kiss on the cheek before taking a few steps back.

“Just watch and tell me what you think.” You wink, waiting for the music to start playing. And when it does, you don’t hesitate to let your body flow with the song.

You drop to the floor and Shigaraki’s jaw does too. He didn’t expect this, he also didn’t expect you to look so damn fine.

You were eating this dance up, leaving no crumbs whatsoever. Now he remembers where he’d heard this song before, you were telling him about some dance.

You pop your ass and smile, staring back at him as you run your hands down your body, showing him just how confident you were feeling.

And when it was all over, Tomura put a momentary pause on his game to show you just how good you had done.

»»————-　★　————-««

overhaul/kai chisaki

»»————-　★　————-««

Chisaki doesn’t keep up with trends, he’s got a gang to run.

That being said, he does enjoy when you show him things, like your favorite song or trend. So he knows what’s popular by you.

However, when you pull him into your private room and tell him to close his eyes and only open them when he hears music, he’s a bit skeptical.

Yet he follows suit and he doesn’t regret it.

Dressed in a cute nurse outfit, you’re swaying your hips to the music and he’s enjoying it. He’s eager to see more. The outfit is hugging to your skin tightly, leaving little to his imagination despite having seen you many times before.

You were just so beautiful, your were pulling him in with every little move.

And then you dropped to the floor, bouncing your ass in a squat and feeling yourself, proving that you were basking in the confidence Chisaki loved seeing you in.

He loved when you were confident, unafraid to do whatever it is you wanted, god he loved how empowered you became.

When the music was over you made your way over to him and patiently waited for him to let you sit on his lap.

“Angel that was wonderful.” Chisaki rested his hands on your thighs, squeezing them tight as you rested on his lap.

“I’m glad you liked it, sir.” You leaned in and pressed a small kiss on the tip of his mask-covered nose.

“Would you show me some more Angel?”

»»————-　★　————-««

eraserhead/shota aizawa

»»————-　★　————-««

This man is either teaching or napping so good luck.

KJSFSJH kidding okay actually headcanon time

He’s got a lot of work to do, but he does take breaks for you, and he enjoys spending time with you.

That being said, he doesn’t know what you’re doing or what you’re asking of him when you pull him out of the bed he was laying in waiting for you to join him for movies and cuddles.

Also his eyes are now permanently glued on you in the outfit you’re in, skin tight and just what he loves, you look good, no great.

You sit him down on a chair in his room and turn on music, allowing him to look at you as you sway your hips until it’s time to do the dance.

“Kitten what are you-” He shuts up when you drop to the floor, showing him the new moves you’d learned.

His hand flies to his mouth as he rests his elbow on the arm of the chair, covering his mouth as he feels his pants grow tight. You looked fine as hell, he was struggling to hold back.

In a squat, you were popping your ass out, smirking as you maintained eye contact with the ravenette.

When it was over, you crawled over to him and rested between his legs.

“What’d you think?” You looked up at him with a soft smile. Shota runs his fingers through your hair and grins.

“It was sexy, kitten. Where’d you learn that from?” 

“You want me to show you?”

»»————-　★　————-««

masterlist

#bakugou x reader #todoroki x reader #deku x reader #kirishima x reader #kaminari x reader #tamaki amajiki x reader #mirio x reader #dabi x reader #hawks x reader #eraserhead x reader #shigaraki x reader #overhaul x reader #my hero academia x reader #bakugou #todoroki #deku #kirishima #kaminari #tamaki amajiki #mirio #dabi #hawks #eraserhead #shigaraki #overhaul

[stuff-from-the-void-matron]

Laurel Wreaths & Animal Teeth (11)

(c!technoblade x fem!reader)

(people showed chapter 10 some nice love so here’s chapter 11. sorry it took so long to get out. I threw my back out and doing just about anything has been physical torture. but I’m starting to feel better so here’s hoping I’ll write more soon. but remember, please comment and reblog. they keep me motivated! <3)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Things settled down pretty well after the election. Almost unbelievably so. Wilbur pretty much completely disappeared afterwards. You felt worried and voiced your concerns with Niki, saying you hoped he wasn’t terribly upset he’d lost the election. You understand he no doubt felt incredibly attached to the title of president, and he may feel resentful of you for ‘stealing’ it from him. Niki smiled at you, glad you were being kinder about this than the other contestants would be in your shoes, but sighed and said,

“Yeah, he’ll probably be upset for a while. But I’m sure he’ll come around to accept you as the new president.”

You gave her a thankful smile, even if you didn’t quite believe her words. But then you paused and wondered if maybe, despite all your reservations about the brunet man, it was possible to smooth things over with him? Maybe all you needed to do was sit and have a talk with him. Perhaps he’d gone insane in the original timeline because both Schlatt and Quackity were… well, for lack of a nicer term, total dicks to him. They were openly antagonistic to the former president, banishing him and his younger brother from the very nation they fought and died for, which no doubt added to his crumbling mental state after L’manberg chose a new leader.

But maybe you could be different from Schlatt and Quackity. Honestly you had no desire to be cruel to Wilbur, though you would not put up with any of his BS, and honestly you hoped to have a neutral relationship with the man. So you decided right then that there was no harm in trying. Your smile brightened and you nodded and said to the blonde woman,

“You’re probably right, he just needs some time. Maybe after a few days he and I can have lunch and just talk. Clear the air between us. I’ve never been president before so I’m sure he’d be a great help in getting me better settled in!”

Niki was super glad you were being so chill about all of this. She knew you were the best choice for president. That’s probably why she’d voted for you. (yeah she’d heard your little speech and was really moved) But she’d never tell Wilbur that. He fully believed she’d voted for Coconut2020, and to be fair she had intended to until she was so moved by your speech. You had a way with words that just put the listener at ease.

“Yeah, I’m sure things will be alright,” Niki replied with a cheerful smile.

-0-

You settled into being president pretty well all things considered. There wasn’t as much work as you were expecting there to be for a president. But perhaps your only frame of reference (the US president) was a bit different than your current job (l’manberg president). L’manberg was super small actually. Especially compared to the United States. Hell, Punz’ house was almost as big as L’manberg if you remember right. 

You’re glad there wasn’t much presidential work to do at that moment. Because you wouldn’t have had time to juggle that work plus going back to your village and packing up some of your stuff in your ender chest before telling the villagers (and azo) what actually happened while you were gone. Which had been an ordeal in itself. You felt bad for just leaving to a new place so out of the blue. But you felt obligated to complete the role of president given to you. You’d feel less obligated if there was some other option you felt safe passing the torch to. Someone not a child. That left out every minor on this server and Wilbur. 

Part of you considered Fundy and Niki for the job but another part of you doubted if they’d be able to handle it. Honestly they shouldn’t have to either. It’s no secret that being president is one of the most stressful jobs a person can have. Being in charge of the safety and well-being of a group of people is enough to turn anyone’s hair grey. Even if the group was just like 10 or so people like L’manberg had. You remember seeing a post about pictures at the start and end of American presidents’ time in office. And each president looked at least a decade older in each after picture. Complete with wrinkles and grey hair. Those happened in FOUR years! Their jobs were so stressful that they aged 10+ years in only 4 years.

You were pulled from your thoughts by Tommy practically shouting “We’re here!!” as you all made it over the hill that led to your village. The first thing you saw was the towering bamboo wall around the perimeter of the place. You’d been so in your own head that you’d actually forgotten about the two boys on either side of you. They’d insisted they accompany you to your village as ‘presidential bodyguards’ despite the fact you said you would be fine. They’d practically demanded to go, to ensure the ‘new prez’ didn’t get attacked on the journey. Amused and touched that they cared, you’d finally relented and let them come along. You’d only be gone a short while anyways. At least that’s what you told yourself. 

It didn’t take long to pack up everything you wanted to take with you to L’manberg. You put all the nice gifts the villagers gave you (as well as a couple of the banners you made) and some of the stuff you made and packed it away into a shulker box you pulled from the Creative inventory before picking up said box and putting it inside your ender chest. Then you just picked that chest up and tucked it safely in your inventory and you were basically done. With packing anyways.. You still had to talk to the villagers and let them know you had to move away for a while. But you doubted they’d be heartbroken or anything. Maybe bummed out but they’d understand. It’s not like they’d be lost without you. They’d been living in this world long before you showed up and they’d probably be here long after you left.

Then you were ringing the village bell. And like every time you did the villagers all poked their heads out from wherever they were to see who rang it and what was going on. And when they saw you they brightened and hurried over to see what was happening. They gathered around you and the bell, murmuring curiously between themselves. You sighed and cleared your throat, gathering their attention to you before you hesitated, not entirely sure what to say. Should you explain the entire story from start to finish? No, probably not. That would take a while and you felt like they’d get bored fast. But just blurting out that you were leaving felt too abrupt and blunt. Though your indecision ended up not mattering because Tubbo finally lost patience with the silence and just let the metaphorical cat out of the bag in his usual laid back candid way.

“Are you gonna tell them you’re moving away?”

Oh that caught the villagers’ attention and suddenly you were surrounded by displeased grunts and hums, like surround sound stereos. You sighed and confirmed yes, you were. So with the news out there you started explaining what happened the day before, or at least a shortened version of it. You mentioned how you’d gone to support Tommy, placing a hand on his shoulder as you said this. Then you said how you’d sorta advised everyone to vote for who they felt would lead them smartly, and how you guess they took that as you entering the presidential ring.. And finally how you’d won the election by some points and how you’d not wanted to reject their trust so you’d accepted the job…

“Reader is our new president!!” Tommy practically shouted, clearly excited. 

Though from the disgruntled murmurs from the villagers they didn’t seem happy.. But you told them it would be okay. You’d come and visit them as often as you could while juggling your new job. But even with that promise they didn’t seem happy. Your shoulders slumped a bit and without thinking you said,

“I’m not happy about having to leave the village and move away either. But I made a promise to the people of L’manberg, one I intend to keep.” 

Despite not feeling the best about this you were determined to keep your word.

“Besides, it’s not like I can just pack up the village and move you all next to L’manberg!” you said with a flippant wave of your hand.

But the idea didn’t sound too bad to the villagers. They basically worshipped you as their guardian deity. So if loading up all their possessions and hauling them to a new place meant they got to stay within reach of their deity then so be it. They’d still be living in squalor if it hadn’t been for your kindness and generosity, so they wanted to follow you wherever you went. Be it sunny skies, harsh rain, freezing snow. 

So they all made excited grunts and you blinked at them, catching on to their train of thought pretty fast. You shook your head, missing the confused looks the two teen boys were shooting between you and the villagers, and said they couldn’t follow you to L’manberg. Hearing this made the boys’ eyebrows shoot up and they started asking if the villagers wanted to come live in L’manberg. You sighed and said they seemed to, yes, but it wasn’t viable because there was nowhere for them to live! Moving them all on a spur of the moment thing would be reckless. Not only would the journey be very hard on them and take quite a while but there’s also no homes available for them in L’manberg. 

“We could make some houses for them if they want to move to L’manberg!” Tubbo said with a little grin, not seeing the issue with them coming over.

You rubbed a hand down your face, careful not to jostle your mask too much. But then you sighed and finally caved in. 

“Okay, you can all move next to L’manberg,” you began, but before they could cheer you cut them off with, “BUT! They can’t leave today. I refuse to let them take the whole long journey to L’manberg just so they can be homeless when they get there.”

You said you and some others (who you would pay) would build a new village next door to L’manberg for them. And once it was complete you would come back and help ferry them all over safely. But you might have to take them over in small groups to avoid hostile mobs and stuff. Though despite all the risks the villagers seemed quite happy with everything. So you pulled out your notebook, the same one you’d used when you first showed up to the village actually, and made a note to start construction on a new village to either the North or East of L’manberg. Or whatever side had better building room. But now that that all was settled you bid the villagers goodbye, saying you’d start construction as soon as possible.

With that out of the way you decided to pay a visit to Azo. You missed the adorable little piglin and hoped she was doing okay. Your boys followed you into the Nether, asking what you needed from there so badly. That made you pause and realize they’d never officially met Azo! You smiled down at them and said you’d sort of taken up guardianship of a little piglin girl who lost her parents. You’d expected questions and some comments but got nothing but silence in return, which left you feeling a bit confused. But when you glanced over at the boys you saw Tubbo looking lost in thought and Tommy looking mildly upset. This caused you to stop short, which made them pause and look back at you. 

“What’s wrong?” you couldn’t help but ask.

But they both waved you off, Tubbo with a soft ‘what do you mean?’ and Tommy with an almost harsh sounding  ‘nothing’, both of which didn’t sound the least bit convincing. So you tilted your head to the side and in a firmer (but still gentle) tone you asked again what was wrong. Tommy’s nose scrunched up and he crossed his arms, adamantly saying nothing and asking if you all could hurry up and see ‘this kid’ since you had to hurry back to L’manberg. Tubbo tried to piggyback off Tommy, his smile attempting to be brighter as he agreed, saying he wanted to meet your ‘new kid’. That’s when it hit you..

“Are you two upset that I adopted a kid?”

Tommy wasn’t very subtle with his feelings, his loud “WHAT?! NO!” didn’t convince you of his supposed ‘uncaring’ regarding the situation. Tubbo however reacted slower than his friend, like he was processing what you’d asked before he gave a laugh that sounded too stilted to be genuine and denied being upset, saying that was ridiculous. Tommy actually started walking away, heading in the direction you three had followed when you were together here last time, with the goatish brunet watching him anxiously. But you called for him to stop and come back, maybe a touch sterner than you’d wanted. But when the blond came back to you he refused to look at you, just scowling down at his feet. You felt your heart ache at the sight and let out a calm breath.

You wrapped one arm around the blond’s shoulders and the other around his back, pulling him into a comforting hug. You laid your cheek on the top of his mop of hair, glancing down at Tubbo who was shifting between watching you both and glancing away nervously. Without much thought you removed the hand holding Tommy’s back and instead used it to carefully tug the brunet boy into the hug. They just stood there at first, still and awkward almost. But once Tubbo wrapped his arms around your hips and Tommy’s back his blond friend quickly caved and sunk into your warmth, wrapping his arms around you both tightly, like he was afraid you’d both disappear. 

You took a breath and gently began to rock the two back and forth, missing how Tommy’s eyes pricked with hot tears as he heard your steady heartbeat against his ear. After a couple minutes of just standing there relaxed into the hug you said quietly but with as much emotion as you could put into it,

“Tommy, Tubbo, please talk to me. I can do many things, but reading minds is not one of them.”

You felt your shirt become warm and you frowned and hugged them tighter,

“If something is bothering you two, if you’re sad or upset or angry then you need to tell me so I can maybe do something to make you feel better. I never wanna see either of you upset, so please… talk to me?”

The air around you three was unintentionally heavy, only the sound of fire crackling nearby broke up the silence. It was killing you to remain quiet but you didn’t want to push them to speak. That would just make them clam up and possibly push you away. So you waited, just holding and rocking them as you did. And your eyes brightened when your patience was rewarded.

“.... Why’d you have to go and get a kid?”

You half expected for Tommy to be the one to break the silence, he was always so against the quiet. But no, instead it had been Tubbo who finally buckled and voiced his thoughts. You couldn’t help but ask what he meant. And he sort of stuttered over his words, not sounding exactly sure what he wanted to say before he got his thoughts and mouth to cooperate.

“I thought you already-.. I mean you have us.. Why’d you-..”

If your heart could physically break like glass then you knew after hearing that it would be in a hundred pieces on the floor. You couldn’t help but pull them closer and bury your face between theirs, unknowingly letting out a softened keening sound. 

“I want you both to listen, just because I take another child under my wing doesn’t mean I no longer care about you two. I don’t think I could ever stop caring about you. You’re my boys, and I-....” here is where you hesitated, not wanting so sound weird but you continued,

“If you both want… I mean since neither of you have one to my knowledge… I’d happily be your mom.”

Shy isn’t exactly how you’d describe the two boys you’d begun to care for, but there was no other word accurate enough to describe how they agreed to your offer to be their mom. Tubbo gave an almost meek, “alright, sure” while holding onto your waist and Tommy gave a long-suffering sigh while trying to discreetly wipe his eyes and said, “I guess you’re cool enough to be my mum. Barely though.” That caused you to let out a loud guffaw, your grip on them loosening enough to where you could ruffle the blond’s hair.

“Ohhhhh, Big man himself thinks I’M cool? Very high praise~”

The heavy atmosphere lightened and your laughter had the two boys laughing too. But then a sly grin took over your face and you chuckled. The sound alerted the boys of your mischievous mood and they looked up when you started talking.

“Well, now that you’ve accepted me as your mom I’m legally obligated to do all sorts of ‘Mom Stuff’, I hope you realize that. Like making sure you both eat things besides bread and meat, make sure you sleep regularly, and do the spit thing when you’ve got dirt on your face.”

They gave you a look that was a mixture of confusion and mild disgust, and Tommy couldn’t help but blurt out,

“What the fuck do you mean by ‘spit thing’??”

Unbeknownst to him, he’d activated your Mom Trap Card and your grin grew into a smirk and you raised your hand, casually commenting that he seemed to have a bit of dirt on his cheek, and then you licked your thumb and moved it towards his face. He shrieked and practically threw himself backwards to avoid your spit covered finger. But you still had your arm around his shoulders so he didn’t get far. He rapidly screamed out a verbal blur of ‘nonononoNONONO!’ that had Tubbo nearly doubling over, howling with laughter.

Though his laughter abruptly cut off with a gasp when Tommy escaped your hold, causing you to turn your sights on him. He let out a noise that sounded suspiciously like the bleat of a goat before turning and running from you. You just cackled and chased after him, your longer legs giving you the advantage. You caught up with him before he knew it and lifted him in a backwards hug. Now it was Tommy’s turn to laugh at Tubbo.

But you did let him down, without cleaning his face, and smiled down at the pair and said sincerely,

“All joking aside… I think you two would make a cool pair of big brothers..”

Tommy took that and ran with it, saying of COURSE he would be! He was practically Tubbo’s big brother already! Which just caused Tubbo to argue with him that uh, NO, he was older than Tommy! So HE was the older brother out of the two of them, if anything! And oh boy that caused them both to go back and forth, arguing about who was the ‘older brother’ between them. Tubbo insisted it was him because he was born first but Tommy insisted it was him because he was taller. You just shook your head and led the bickering duo down the familiar path to Azo’s little ‘house’ you built her. And as you reached the open area you saw her outside the house playing with a couple other baby piglins. But when she looked up and saw you she squealed happily and all but sprinted over to you. You made sure to bend down and hold your hands out to catch her. 

She was so excited to see you again that she totally missed the two boys standing at your sides. At least until she heard them and then she stiffened and stared down at Tubbo from her place in your arms. Neither boy really knew what to say so you decided to intervene and put out introductions. You tapped her hand and smiled down at her, helping her worry ease a bit.

“Azo, I missed you! I want to introduce you to my sons! This,” you gestured to Tubbo, “is Tubbo. And this,” you turned your head and pointed to the blond on the other side, “is Tommy. They’re both very nice. And they wanted to meet you!”

You turned so you and Azo were both facing the boys and saw them smiling genuinely. Relief flooded you, thinking they were actually glad to meet the little piglin, unaware the smiles were more stemming from the fact you’d called them your sons so easily.

But you saw the wariness still on Azo’s face and worried she’d not like her new brothers. Suddenly you got a bright idea and your smile widened as you spoke up and said, 

“Hey, don’t you two have a gift for Azo? Maybe something yellow and shiny~?”

Tubbo’s mouth dropped down into an ‘o’ as he realized what you meant. Then he elbowed Tommy and then pulled open his inventory and started looking through it. Tommy glared at him, moving his arm away after getting jabbed, but then his eyebrows raised when he saw his best friend pull out a gold ingot from his inventory. Then he understood what you meant and hurried to look through his inventory as well. Thankfully he did have some gold ingots leftover from when he was crafting golden apples.

Azo perked up when she saw the gold ingot Tubbo had taken from his inventory. And when he offered it to her she couldn’t hold back the happy snort she let out as she joyfully accepted it. You giggled at how she admired the saffron colored bar. And when Tommy extended his own gold ingot you laughed when Azo’s little tail began to swish back and forth in glee as she took that one too. She looked so cute as she admired her new items. You rubbed her back and said,

“See? They’re pretty nice, right? Why don’t we go have something to eat? And we can hang out.”

The tiny piglin seemed more than happy with that plan and snorted happily. You carried her towards the house, her little friends having long since scurried off. The teens behind you followed your lead, joining you in the house. You sat Azo down and suggested she show off her toys to Tubbo and Tommy, which she started doing gladly. The two played with her while you brewed some tea and crafted some cookies. Chilled rosehip tea and shortbread cookies were on the menu and after it was all done you laid it out on the table before calling them over. The boys were all too happy for the chilly drink, the cold giving them reprieve from the heat of the Nether. But Azo was shocked by the cold, not having experienced something like this before. It took a bit of explanation to get her to give it a try, and despite how it made her shiver she seemed to really like it. And cookies were always popular. So the plate was emptied in a flash.

As you sat with the three, listening to Tommy brag to Azo about how ‘cool and tough’ he was and how he’s practically a hero in the Overworld while Tubbo interjected with contradictions, you felt yourself smile serenely; truly happy where you were right then.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

@lady-bee-fechin @kacchasu @putridjoy @lunawritesstories @galaxypankitty3030 @paradigmax @zachariethememerie @killmewithafanfic @trinity-1002107 @hufflepuff-demigod @truthdaze @exorcisms-with-elmo @redbloodtea @heythereimhaylz @olyink @jackalopedoodles @nikkineeky @artsimatsu @hufflepuff-demigod @corpiet @beepa99 @anxiousnarwhale @bananaaddictmilkshake @realitycanbeajerk @lostandsouciant @thegeekisheere @sparkling-gayyy @woman-soot @xxtwizztedxx @v10dw4lk3r

#technoblade x reader #techno x reader #dream smp x reader #dsmp x reader #mcyt x reader #c!tommy #c!tubbo #c!niki #c!wilbur #c!fundy

[theladyofdeath]

Tempting the Fates {Chapter 4}

Summary: It’s the final semester of Aelin Galathynius’ collegiate career and she is so beyond ready to be done. Her schedule is packed full of nursing classes and labs designed to test her knowledge and hone her skills for the real world and her “big girl” job. However, she needs one last elective to graduate, so she decides to study a subject she’s always been fascinated by: Mythology. Who would have thought that a class about gods and goddesses living complicated lives would end up complicating her own in such an unexpected way?

Word Count: 2550

Chapters will be posted every Wednesday.

Tempting the Fates Masterlist

Shelby’s Masterlist

Tara’s Masterlist

Apollo

– God of light, prophecy, inspiration, poetry, the sun, music and arts, medicine and healing

Aelin tried to convince herself that she got up and got ready two hours early for class because of her busy schedule. She kept telling herself it was for the meeting she had with her advisor, about a possible internship at the end of the semester.

She knew that both reasons, while extremely important, were full of shit. She knew she’d showered, blow dried and curled her hair for Rowan. It wasn’t that she was trying to impress him. She’d already done that and the chance she had to be with him had come and gone.

No, now it was about proving to him that even though this class may be a gen ed, she was taking it seriously.

Dropping the class had crossed her mind. She really didn’t need to take it, she could still find a different one to pick up. But she didn’t want to think about the sort of impression it would leave about her.

If there was anything to know about Aelin Galathynius, it was that she was not a quitter, nor did she run from her problems.

Or heartaches.

With one last look in the mirror, and a whistle from Lysandra, Aelin was out the door and hurrying across campus. She grabbed a coffee on the way, but avoided her usual place, knowing full well that Rowan enjoyed the same famous cafe that she did.

He wasn’t there yet when she got to the hall, but she took the same seat she had the class before.

She wondered if Rowan would be looking for her this time.

She quickly shook the thought away.

With her hot coffee on the corner of her fold up desk, she was pulling out her notebook and a pen, waiting anxiously for class to begin.

For him to walk through the door.

Apparently he liked to be right on the dot, though, because students continued to wander in, but he did not.

She was tapping her pen against her notebook, doing her best not to stare at the clock. She was just anxious for her day to start. It wasn’t that she wanted to see Rowan.

Professor Whitethorn, she amended in her head. She had to quit thinking of him as Rowan. She couldn’t think of him like that anymore, his body pressing into hers, lips on her neck, as he—

Shaking her head, Aelin sighed and suddenly realized that the rest of the class had hushed. She was so focused on reprimanding herself for her highly inappropriate thoughts that she hadn’t noticed him come through the door and begin setting up for class. When she dared to glance towards the front, she found his eyes on her. He quickly looked away, going back to his laptop and setting up the PowerPoint on screen.

Maybe he hadn’t been looking at her.

Maybe it had all been in her mind.

But she didn’t think it had been.

He had been watching her.

“Happy Thursday, class,” he began, as the title page of his presentation flashed onto the board. “Glad to see you all showed up again. Must mean my first class didn’t suck.” Quiet laughter thrummed through the room. Aelin couldn’t muster a laugh, though. “On Tuesday, we covered the basics. So, today… Sorry, we’re doing that again.”

More laughter, especially from the pretty, flirty girls up front.

Aelin couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

Which, when she settled her eyes back on Rowan, he definitely saw.

Come on, get your shit together, she chastised herself. With her back straightened, she gave him her full attention.

She took dutiful notes, but his slides didn’t hold much in the way of information. They were mostly headers, with a few bullet points. Most of the important information, information she knew would be critical for homework or exams, came straight from Rowan’s mouth.

It was clear that he loved mythology, that it wasn’t just a class his aunt had tossed his way and told him to figure it out. He was a trove of knowledge and she noticed he had a habit of going on slight tangents when he got going on a topic he was clearly interested in.

After a student asked him to clarify what he meant about Hercules not being Zeus’ only son, he ended up talking for nearly twenty minutes about what the beloved Disney movie had gotten wrong. Aelin had stopped taking notes and was watching him go on and on about how Hades, while god of the underworld, was not necessarily a villain. He just had a job to do. A job that had rules that must be followed, or the consequences could damn not only him, but others involved. His eyes found hers again and the amused smile on her face fell as she made the correlation between their own situation and the story.

They held each other’s gazes for far longer than was appropriate, and Rowan cleared his throat, going back to the PowerPoint, and the  predetermined lesson plans he’d made, which didn’t include children’s movie breakdowns.

She watched him.

She listened.

And she found it all fascinating. 

Rowan peeked at the clock after going on and on, and stilled, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, I guess I’ll end there. There is an assignment due by tomorrow evening. You can find and submit it online. It’s an opinion piece. I want a little insight as to why you were so interested to take this class, or what you’ve found fascinating so far.” He sat on his desk, his legs hanging over the side, his feet nearly touching the ground as he leaned back on his palms. Aelin found it charming. “You’re going to write a short essay telling me of your favorite deity. It could be one I’ve talked about so far, or one I haven’t. It’s your choice. But, tell me why they are your favorite. Give me a little depth. And, remember, this is a college course. Grammar counts.”

The clock struck nine-thirty and everyone began packing up. Aelin had been so captivated by his voice that she had to snap herself back to reality.

She quickly packed up her bag, alongside the other students around her. She noticed then how young they all were, and she was willing to bet that she may be the only senior on the roster. As she was descending the stairs, she found Rowan’s eyes on her again, but he looked away as his attention was taken, thanks to the group of girls who’d been sitting in the front row. She heard vague questions of whether they could all write about Aphrodite, since they all related to her.

The scoff Aelin thought she’d kept to herself had apparently been out loud, since not only Rowan looked at her as she passed, but so did the three girls. With his attention on her again, she decided to give him a little wave.

“See you later, Professor Whitethorn.”

If there was some extra sway to her hips, it wasn’t on purpose.

At least that’s what she told herself.

Two and a half hours later, Aelin was starving. She’d just gotten out of an extremely complicated lab and she could barely focus over the growling of her stomach. Twice, the instructor had looked over at her, half expecting to find a dog stashed under the table she was working at.

So when the class let out, she was hurrying toward the cafeteria ready to get a salad from the salad bar and a big ass slice of pizza.

It was all about balance. 

As she was waiting in line to fill her plate with salad, she heard a voice behind her.

“Are you actually getting lettuce or just filling your plate with ham, cheese, and croutons?” 

Aelin looked over her shoulder to find Chaol, her ex, suppressing a smile.

Aelin chuckled. “If it’s the same price, you may as well pile up on the good stuff.” 

Chaol gave her a small smile. “Fair enough. It’s good to see you, Aelin. You look good.”

Things hadn’t ended the best between her and Chaol, but that had been just after freshman year. At least now when they ran into one another, they could have nice little conversations like this one.

No hard feelings.

“You too,” she said, and he did. He’d been in an accident the year before. They weren’t sure he was going to walk again. In all honesty, it was just good to see him on his feet.

“How long until your class?” He asked, sliding his tray along behind hers.

She glanced down at her watch. “About forty five minutes. You?”

“This is my long break,” he sighed. “I’ve got an hour and a half, but didn’t feel like leaving campus. Want to have lunch with me?”

“Sure.” Her smile wasn’t forced, it was easy and she was glad they could even do this, when three years again, they could barely be in the same room.

“I assume you’re getting a piece of pizza after this,” Chaol said with a smirk, nodding towards her plate. “So I’ll grab us a table while you get the rest of your lunch.”

She scoffed but nodded, and went off to get a slice of pizza. When she ordered her pizza, she also got a slice of cheesecake. It was his favorite, something she hadn’t forgotten, but it didn’t hurt that she liked it, too.

Finding him in the cafeteria, she sat down at the table across from him. “How’s Yrene doing?”

He blushed, and Aelin had to admit it was adorable. After his accident, he’d fallen for his physical therapist, and she was just as smitten with him. It must have been all the one-on-one sessions, because Chaol had never been one to let someone in. Aelin had met Yrene early in her med classes, but Yrene had specialized in PT and graduated in less than three years, taking as many classes as she could manage and even studying through the summers as well.

“It’s going good,” he said, at last. “We, uh, just moved in together, actually.”

Aelin lifted a brow. “That was fast.”

Chaol shot her a look.

Aelin laughed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I meant, good for you. I like Yrene. A lot. You two are good together.”

Chaol cleared his throat before taking a bite of his salad. “Thanks.” 

Aelin chuckled, taking a bite of her pizza.

Chaol blinked. “What?”

“You get so uncomfortable when it comes to feelings,” she said. “Always have.”

His eyes narrowed at her. “That’s not true.”

Aelin stopped mid-chew and raised a brow.

Even Chaol couldn’t help but chuckle at the expression. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. What about you? Seeing anyone?”

Aelin hesitated, then said, “No.”

A slow grin appeared on Chaol’s mouth. “Didn’t sound so sure about what one.”

Aelin shrugged. “Better be nice or I’m not sharing this magnificent cheesecake with you.”

Holding up his hands in placation, Chaol went back to his salad. Rowan was a dangerous topic, one she wouldn’t share with anyone but Lysandra, so she summed it up quickly. “Met someone I thought I hit it off with. Turns out we didn’t work.”

He slowly nodded. Aelin knew he’d had a couple failed relationships between her and Yrene. “I get it, I’m sorry. Still sucks.”

Shrugging again, she turned to her salad. “It happens. Not a big deal. So if you’re living with Yrene, does that mean you and Dorian broke up? Or is he playing house with you, too?”

Chaol leveled her with a look. Chaol and Dorian had been best friends long before they came to the University of Orynth. They were both from Adarlan, both trying to get away from overbearing fathers, and decided college across the country was the way to do it. They’d been roommates every year and Aelin couldn’t even imagine Chaol living with anyone except Dorian. But now he was. “He moved into an apartment with Manon this semester when I moved in with Yrene.”

Aelin blinked. “Blackbeak? He moved in with Manon Blackbeak?”

Nodding, Chaol went on. “Apparently, they’ve been dating for about a year, without anyone noticing.”

Something in the way he said it told Aelin that he had noticed, but when Dorian had his mind set on something, there was no stopping him. And apparently, he’d decided to date one of the most terrifying women on campus.

Aelin’s response was eloquent. “Wow.”

Chaol grinned. “I like it when you’re caught off guard. It’s satisfying.”

With a scoffed she nudged his leg with the toe of her sneaker. “Well, I don’t. Dorian will be getting a very angry phone call this afternoon.”

“I’ll be sure to give him a warning,” Chaol promised.

Aelin chuckled, taking the last bite of her pizza. “It’s good to see you all happy, though. Really.”

Chaol’s eyes softened. “Thanks, Aelin.”

She nodded. “Even if I am terrified that Dorian will get eaten alive.”

Chaol laughed, and she had forgotten how nice Chaol’s rare, hearty laugh was.

She meant it. She was so happy for them, both of them. It was interesting how things changed over the course of a few short years.

Their conversation continued, as did the laughs, and before she knew it, Aelin glanced down at her watch. She had less than fifteen minutes to haul ass back to the nursing building for her next class. Chaol, who had much longer to sit with nothing to do, assured her that he could handle her trash and told her to get to class. With a hug, and a promise that they’d have dinner soon, all of them, even Manon, Aelin was hurrying out of the cafeteria building.

Somehow, the entire time she’d been having lunch with Chaol, she hadn’t noticed the set of pine green eyes watching her.

Rowan’s own break had been at the same time as hers, but the gen ed building was much closer than wherever she was having to run off to, so he had longer to sit and— there was no denying it— brood. They were halfway across the room, so he couldn’t hear any of their conversation. He had no clue who the tall man was she smiled at so often, but clearly they were very familiar with each other with how easily they talked. And he made her laugh. A lot.

Rowan wasn’t sure why that was what grated on his nerves the most, but it unsettled him.

Seeing Aelin with someone else, someone clearly her own age, it all unsettled him. He didn’t like it. Almost as much as her parting words in class had.

See you later, Professor Whitethorn.

It’s like she was mocking him, yet at the same time, she clearly wasn’t. She was doing exactly as he’d asked of her, seeing him as her professor, not as her boyfriend.

No, he reprimanded himself. Not boyfriend. Hookup.

They’d had sex one time, that didn’t give either of them any claim over the other. It was a hookup and nothing more. And she was his gods-damned student.

She was off limits, in every way possible.

Yet he couldn’t figure out why seeing her with someone else, someone she should clearly be interested in instead of him, had him seeing red.

#rowaelin #rowan #aelin #fanfic #fanfiction #tog #throne of glass #modern au #professor au #college au #sjm #snacmc collab #snelbx x tacmc collab

[lightsovermonaco]

Speed and Stress: Part 2

Masterlist

Thank you to @acollectionofficsandshit for betaing, your comments on this one were unhinged gold 

Word Count: 3.1k

Recommended Vibes: “Perfect Day” by Tundra Beats

Part 1

Your brother was late. Not that anyone was surprised.

“Got the time mixed up,” he says as you climb into his absurdly tall truck. Living in Texas for three years had turned him into somewhat of a country boy, though not enough that he forgot his upbringing. He was still a blue blooded Los Angeles boy, just with a love for trucks and longhorn cattle.

“At least I wasn’t waiting for an hour this time,” you say and sling your bag to the backseat. Deciding to get right to the good stuff, you clasp  your hands together. “So! I have some news.”

Hunter grins at you. “You finally found a job?”

You roll your eyes and shoot him a pointed look. “No, dipshit. Better than that. I got us paddock passes for the whole weekend.”

“WHAT?” He jerks the wheel, horns honking at you as other drivers swerve. You grab the dash to steady yourself, laughing at his outburst. “Do you know how hard it was for me to get general admission tickets? How the hell did you get paddock passes?”

“May have met someone pretty high up at McLaren in Los Angeles,” you say, examining your nails.

“Like, Zak Brown? You met Zak Brown?” Hunter was such a fan boy, you had to laugh. His love for McLaren ran so deep he practically bled blue and orange. The only reason you watched the sport was because of him shoving it down your throat for years, but damn if you weren't glad for it.

“Daniel Ricciardo.”

Hunter choked on air but managed to stay in his lane this time. “And you waited until now to tell me?”

“I didn’t know it was him when I met him! He was on a motorcycle and I stopped to help film a tiktok and then-”

“Of course you’d stop,” he mutters, shaking his head. “You’re a sucker for bikes.”

“Yeah well, lucky that I am, cause all I had to do was flirt to get us those passes.”

Your intention had never been to take advantage of Daniel. It was more the opposite in fact; you were just living in the moment and capitalizing on the once in a lifetime opportunity to flirt with your celebrity crush. You had to admit, it turned out better than you'd ever thought it would.

“I can’t believe you seduced Daniel freakin’ Ricciardo,” he says, shaking his head. “You astound me.”

“I didn’t seduce him!” You protest.

"Sorry my bad. You charmed him. That sound better?"

You roll your eyes. "Whatever. I damn near had a heart attack when I figured out it was him but he was kind enough to let me brush it off."

"Well, thank god for your two-wheeled obsession because without it, we would be watching the prix from the nosebleeds."

You laugh and shake your head. Hunter tended to have a poor filter when he was excited and tended to spew whatever was on his mind. "Just watch your tongue this weekend, alright? I'd rather embarrass myself than have you do it for me."

Hunter gives a mock salute. "Yes ma'am."

**********

You'd stuffed five different outfits in your bag in preparation for the grand prix weekend. In theory, it shouldn't be hard to decide what to wear. But Friday morning you changed clothes so many times you lost count. No matter what combination you tried you weren't satisfied.

Finally, you give up and settle on a McLaren polo and denim shorts. Simple and comfortable, but form fitting enough to catch Daniel's eye should you run into him.

You knew you shouldn't, but you pull out your phone to text him anyway.

Thanks again for the tickets. Let me know if you've got any free time so I can properly thank you!

You hit send before your brain has the chance to overanalyze the message. You check your phone obsessively the entire drive to the circuit, only half expecting a response. You tuck your phone in your pocket when you get to the gates, determined not to let it get to you. Daniel warned you he would be busy, and you knew that responding to you was likely on the low end of his list of priorities.

Hunter gets you to the circuit a half hour before they let fans in and you have to listen to him ramble about driver stats the entire time. Normally you don't mind; guessing who's most likely to win each Sunday is something of a competition in your household. But today, you couldn't focus enough to put any thought into your prediction, instead just blurting Daniel's name.

"You're only saying that cause he's into you," Hunter says, grinning savagely. "He struggles in Austin and you know it."

"So? He's in a McLaren this year. You saw his pace in Bahrain, and that was with a damaged floor! He'll podium for sure." You cross your arms and return his grin. "Besides, he's motivated."

"Oh, is he?"

"I told him I'd buy the winner of the United States grand prix a drink. Up to him whether it's him or Verstappen."

"Oh my god you have a date with Daniel Ricciardo?"

"Dude, chill out. It's not set in stone. Honestly, he's probably forgotten that I exist."

"Has he texted you?"

You glance down at your phone and are greeted with an empty inbox. "No. Not after the initial time so I could have his number." You shrug and pick an invisible piece of lint from your arm. "But he said he'd be too busy anyway."

"Guess we'll see once we get to will call, huh? If he's forgotten about you."

"Yeah." An odd feeling rolls through you. It feels a bit like nerves mixed with hope, but you stamp down on it. You were here to enjoy yourself. The trip of a lifetime had been handed to you on a golden platter and you were wont to let something as trivial as nervousness ruin it.

Bells chime as you step into the blissfully cool will call office. A blonde woman with a bit too much blush dusted on her cheeks greets you with a smile. 

"What can I do for you?"

"Picking up some tickets that were left for me by a driver?" You try, unsure of the proper procedure. "I don't have a paper or anything."

She waves a hand in the air as if she expected as much. "All I need is your identification. They should be under the name."

"Oh uh, of course." You motion for Hunter to hand over your wallet and show the woman your driver's license.

"Great. Wait here and I'll grab those for you."

You drum your fingers on the desk while waiting for her to return. After what feels like ages she re-emerges empty handed.

"I'm not seeing anything here with your name on it," she says, her plastic smile at odds with her sincerity. "I'm afraid your tickets aren't valid until Sunday."

"Can you double check? Daniel said they'd be here-"

"So sorry. There's no record of anyone dropping tickets off for you."

You blink, holding your tongue in the face of her blunt response. "Okay. I guess ill try and get it sorted out."

Hunter breaks the tension. "Can't you call him?"

"I can't just call him, I'm sure he's busy."

"Either that or we don't get in. Just do it, he gave you his number and specifically told you to let him know if there were any problems, didn't he?"

Yes he had, but that didn't mean you wanted to disturb him. He was probably knees deep in some sort of race weekend press conference or drivers meeting and heaven forbid you interrupt.  But it was either that or you slink home disappointed and empty handed.

"Fine," you grumble, pulling out your phone with deliberate slowness. Hunter crosses his arms and tips his head to the side, a smile playing on his lips.

"Well?"

"It's dialing, you good for nothing busybody-"

"I was wondering how long it would take you to call," Daniel answers, voice radiating sunshine.

You cut right to the chase, not giving yourself a single second to evaluate how your heart skips. "Look, I don't wanna distract you on a race weekend but I'm at will call and they're telling me they can't find any passes left for me."

"Let me guess," he starts, raising his voice to be heard over the pneumatic tools in the background, "You're dealing with Jenny?"

Your eyes fall to the name on the woman's lanyard. She shifts under your gaze like she knew exactly who you were on the phone with. "Yep. Spot on."

"Kinda figured she would be a problem. She's got a huge crush on me and does this every time."

You fight back the strange sensation his offhand comment brings to the surface. "Oh, really?"

"I'll be right there. Give me ten minutes or so."

"Oh you don't have to-"

"Hey, no big deal. I gotta go that way anyway."

"Uh, okay. See you soon?"

"Yup. On my way."

You hang up and stare down at the phone, stunned.

"Well?" Hunter asks.

"I guess he's coming here to sort it out himself."

He blinks rapidly and shakes his head. "Hold on. Are you telling me that I get to meet Daniel? Like right now?"

"Can you relax?" You laugh lightly. "Honestly you're gonna freak him out."

"Uh, yeah sure. No big deal, just meeting one of my favorite drivers in the minus five minutes and I'm completely unprepared. It's fine."

If you roll your eyes any harder they'd pop out of your head. "Relax. He's laid back, but I don't want you to freak out and embarrass us both."

"Excuse me," Jenny breaks in, her distaste clear. "Please move aside if you're not picking up passes."

"Er, yeah. Sorry." You shuffle awkwardly off to the side to wait. Cheesy elevator music plays and Jenny shoots you glares until the door squeaks open and the human incarnation of the sun steps inside. Your breathing stutters when the Australian shoots you a wink and a grin before sauntering up to the counter.

"Why hello there Jen," he says, and she giggles coyly. 

"Hi Daniel." She lays a hand on his forearm, the touch light and flirty. "What can I help you with?"

Daniel leans into her, whispering conspiratorially. Whatever he says has her bold smile faltering, replaced by a mask of professional cheer. Daniel shoots you another wink as the woman retreats to a back room, returning moments later with your supposedly missing passes.

"Thank you," Daniel says sweetly, taking them from her and turning to you. "I think these are yours."

"Thanks." You take the passes and hand one off to your awestruck brother. You nudge him and he comes to his senses in time to shake the hand Daniel sticks out.

"You must be the brother," he says. "I see you're a fan."

Dressed head to toe in McLaren colors, there was no other conclusion for Daniel to draw. For once your brother is the one stunned into silence so you answer for him, "Yeah, only a little. He was crushed when you left Red Bull cause Max is his other favorite driver and now he has to split his loyalties between teams."

Dan's laugh snaps Hunter out of his trance. "I know you're busy but do you think you can sign something for me?"

"Of course. How about this?" Daniel snatches the hat from Hunter's head and produces a sharpie from his pocket, signing the brim with practiced efficiency. 

"He'll be texting the group chat about that as soon as you're gone," you tell Daniel who laughs along with you.

Heat rises to your cheeks as Daniel's assessing gaze sweeps you from head to toe. "McLaren orange looks good on you."

Channeling his easy confidence you flash him a grin. "Not as good as it looks on you."

He smooths the hem of his soft shell jacket, smile turning bashful. "Anyway. I gotta run. See you Sunday after I win!"

Your eyes follow him as he jogs back through the paddock until he's swallowed by the crowd. You sigh, shifting your weight from foot to foot. God, he was gorgeous. And he had such a big heart. It was a shame someone hadn't snatched him up yet, but then again, that meant you still had a shot, even if it was a slim one.

"So where exactly do these get us?" Hunter toys with the lanyard now placed around his neck. "It doesn't say."

"I'm guessing the McLaren lounge," you say and point to the logo on the passes. "Above the garage."

"That's the perfect vantage point for practice."

And it was the perfect view- before getting in the car Daniel walked out into the pit, suited up in his cobalt racesuit and minty helmet and glanced up. You weren't sure if he saw you or not when you waved but he gave a little salute nonetheless.

Hunter was practically glued to the bank of floor to ceiling windows for the entirety of free practice, immersing himself in the experience. You found yourself glancing at the timing tables every lap, silently hoping to see the RIC tag move up. By the end of the second session he had been fourth fastest, a few tenths behind both Mercedes and the Red Bull of Verstappen. 

By the time you make it back to Hunter's house, you're both exhausted from a full day of running up and down the paddock. The pair of you had been determined to soak up every second of it, sneaking into whatever offices you could and stealing bites off the buffets and cups of coffee. 

Saturday’s free practice and qualifying session pass in a blur of color. Daniel drags his McLaren up the ranks to qualify fourth, his best starting position so far this season. He had a decent shot at the podium- Bottas should be easy pickings and if Verstappen and Hamilton made any mistakes, Daniel might even have a shot at the win.

The excitement in the air is palpable as you both flash your badges and head back up the now familiar path to the McLaren lounge. An hour before lights out, the v6 engines rumble to life below. You venture out onto the balcony, watching and waiting for a glimpse of Daniel.

The Aussie does you one better by walking out, race suit on and helmet in hand. He chats animatedly with Michael before stopping and craning his neck upwards. Michael nudges him with his elbow but Dan ignores him, answering your tiny wave with a wink. He mimes taking a drink and you roll your eyes.

Dan throws his head back and laughs, audible over the cacophony below. He gives you one final salute before Michael drags him back into the garage.

Ten minutes later cars begin streaming out on track, Daniel taking the fourth grid place as his mechanics once again swarm him. Tire blankets are secured, keeping them warm and pliable ahead of the formation lap. Thirty seconds before the boys are released, they're peeled back off as everyone scrambles off the pavement. Verstappen leads them away down the 3.4 mile track for the formation lap. Dan does a few small power slides before taking his place on the second row.

One by one, the red lights illuminate and disappear quicker than your blink. Daniel gets away clean while Bottas stumbles out of the gate, leaving himself wide open for Daniel's overtake on his right side. Cheers erupt around you, your brother going so far as to lift you off your feet.

Maybe Dan had a shot at winning after all.

A nail-biting 38 laps pass without a change in the order of the top three. Finally, a mistake in Max's pit stop sees him return to track third, just behind Daniel. The McLaren driver puts up the fight of his life, late braking at every corner and defending his position for all he was worth. Lewis was twenty seconds ahead- he wouldn't be winning but he could defend his second place spot.

Lewis Hamilton, race winner for the seventh time at the Circuit of the Americas!

Daniel Ricciardo crosses the line second, Max Verstappen takes home that last podium step for Red Bull. An astonishing fifty six laps here today in Austin!

The box erupts around you, a roar of cheers making it impossible to hear what else Crofty and Brundle were saying. But it didn't matter as Daniel raises his fist when he swings back into parc ferme, jumping out to be congratulated by his team. It was his first podium for the papaya team and you can tell it means the world to them.

"Looks like you're taking Lewis out for a drink," your brother teases. "Told you he wouldn't win."

"He almost won," you counter. "But hey, I'm not above asking Lewis on a date. Could you imagine? I mean, he would never agree, but still. It would be a hell of a date."

If you crane your neck from the balcony, you can just barely see the podium. Everyone goes quiet for the anthems and erupts again when the champagne is sprayed. The McLaren team chant for a shoey, which Daniel obliges. He sits to unlace his mint green boot and pours champagne into it, drinking from the boot before passing it to Max who joins in on the fun. 

Just as quickly as it began, the celebrations ebb. Daniel is the first to leave the podium which seems odd, given that the PR department surely wants his first big win for the team to be well documented.

Your phone buzzes a second layer. You fish it out of your pocket, a Cheshire grin splitting your face.

"Shouldn't you be busy celebrating?"

"I am," Dan starts, sounding breathless. You can barely hear him over the sound of the crowds chants behind him. "But I want to celebrate with you. I know I didn't win, but how about you let me buy you a drink instead?"

You barely hear anything beyond his first sentence. I want to celebrate with you. Were you dreaming? There was no way this was real.

"Um, I'm sorry, you want to celebrate by going out with me instead of your team?"

"If you'll let me. Hey- just text me okay? I can barely hear you over everyone screaming my name. It may be going to my head."

You laugh, drawing the attention of the vip's nearest you. You give an apologetic smile and move further from the crowd. "I'll text you an address. See you later, second place."

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