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insertdisc5 · 1 year

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Devlog #12: Localization Milestone and Key Art

Hello everyone! Welcome to this month’s devlog!

If you just stumbled upon this, I am Adrienne, also known as insertdisc5! I’m the developer, writer, artist, main programmer, etc of the game. The game being In Stars and Time, a timeloop RPG, which is also the next and final game in the START AGAIN series, following START AGAIN: a prologue (available here!). You can find out more about In Stars and Time here!!!

LET’S GET TO IT. This month has some localization news, as well as a breakdown on key art! What’s key art? Where do you use it? Can you eat it? Read and find out.

The first pass of the Japanese localization is done and implemented!!! You can play the whole game in Japanese from beginning to end now!!!

The next step now is the localization QA, where the localization team plays the game and makes sure the Japanese script works in context. The team got the script in an excel sheet and I tried my best to give context for scenes where I could, but playing through the game themselves allows them to get The Most Context. All Of The Context. So they can make changes to their localization so it can be the best!!!

That’s it for news. Other things are chugga-chugga-chuggin’ behind the scenes as well, and I can’t wait to share it all with you all!!!

Today’s topic-since-I-don’t-have-much-to-talk-about is: key art!

“Adrienne what on Earth is a ‘key art’” This above is the key art.

More generally (and keep in mind this is my layman self talking, I’m sure you could get a better answer elsewhere, but also you’re here, so you might as well learn something huh???), key art is The Big Art that games (and, I assume, other mediums???) use to show off their style and visuals in things such as store fronts, articles, and other such things. It’s Mario jumping in a cool way with his lil star buddy while the planets are behind him. It’s Kratos and Atreus on a boat. It’s sad Siffrin in the foreground, surrounded by stars, while his friends are having fun in the background. It’s The Art!!! It’s the first thing people see about your game!!! It needs to be cool and represent your game!!!

Here’s some examples of the key art being used for Steam store assets. Itch.io is very kind and asks for like 2 assets, but Steam asks for a whoopin’ 30 assets, all with different sizes and orientations, so it means one of the biggest things your key art should be is MODULAR AS HELL. From a massive 1440x3160 vertical banner to an itty-bitty 231x87 horizontal button (called a capsule, it’s the small banner above, and since it’s usually the first thing you see about a game it is THE MOST IMPORTANT ASSET), your key art needs to be ready for anything!!!

For the prologue, I did not plan for this very well. I learned pretty late in development that store assets for itch.io (and later, Steam) were gonna be a thing I should worry about, so I ended up deciding to use the title card art. Which, like, it worked out.

BUT! I had to redraw Siffrin to make sure their hat and body weren’t weirdly cut out, and had to remake the pixelly gradient like a thousand times for each asset to make sure it wouldn’t hide Siffrin’s face. And that’s without mentioning the hell I went through to make sure the massive title logo would fit. Why did I think “START AGAIN START AGAIN START AGAIN: a prologue” was a good title. It was so hard to make it fit in its entirety every time (because, of course, Steam asks you to show the logo in its entirety in every single asset). Why did I choose this title (I’m a Kingdom Hearts fan and my heart is rotten and thinks long titles are funny)

So since I went through hell with START AGAIN’s store assets, for ISAT I made sure to think about the key art way ahead of time teehee.

Every so often I become an absolute genius so I only had to sketch the key art once, as you can see above. You don’t need to understand it because I do and it’s all that matters. Teehee!

Here's the rough illustration! I made it to block out the shapes, and figure out where that dang logo would go. Once again, reminder: if you have text of any kind, figure out where it goes in the rough stage. Future you will thank you. I also had Siffrin look directly at the camera in this rough stage, and then figured. That it would look sadder. If Siffrin looked emo-ly to the side. I do like the look at the camera though. He Is Looking

To talk about The Meaning very quickly, I wanted to show Siffrin front and center, since the whole story is about them. And I wanted to show the whole party, but clearly separated from Siffrin- Siffrin is stuck in a time loop, feels completely apart from them, and I wanted to show that in the key art! With the expressions too- everyone else is happy or engaged in something, interacting with each other, while Siffrin is in his emo phase. And also stars everywhere. Because of course.

Here are all the layers I used- I made sure to draw them on a vector layer in Clip Studio Paint, which means the lines never become pixelated even if you zoom in a lot! As a side note, the full file for this is 4000x3000, which I thought would be too big, but is actually just the right size for all those dang assets.

I also made sure that Siffrin would look the most detailed, since I knew that while everyone could fit for the bigger pictures, for the itty-bitty small ones (or the extremely horizontal ones), I would only show off Siffrin’s face. MODULAR!!!!!

In the end this key art worked pretty well to make the store assets, but if I could talk to past me I would tell them. Make the circle bg taller so it’d fit the more vertical assets. And find a way to leave more space for the characters in the background. I had to remove them/rotate them/zoom them out very often because Siffrin hides them too much because Siffrin is just too dang big. But that’s still manageable, past me. You did a good job past me

So, TLDR, from my experience, what you need to keep in mind when making your key art is:

-make sure it has enough layers to be able to move things around as needed, but not so many layers that you become lost

-fun art that represents your game and its vibe well

-cool everywhere, but able to get by if you zoom in on one thing (which usually for ISAT’s assets is Siffrin’s face)

-able to work in a vertical and horizontal format and at many different sizes

I hope my key art made people interested enough in the game to try to find out more!!

That’s all I have to say for today! Let me know if you have any questions, or if there’s any aspect of the game development struggle you’d like me to talk about! See you next time!!!

AND DON’T FORGET TO WISHLIST THE GAME ON STEAM ALSO IT REALLY HELPS BECAUSE STEAM’S ALGORITHM IS MORE LIKELY TO SHOW OFF GAMES WITH A HIGH AMOUNT OF WISHLISTS THAT’S THE REASON WHY GAME DEVS ALWAYS ASK TO WISHLIST!!! OKAY BYE!!!!

#devlog #indie dev #in stars and time #start again start again start again #indie game #reference #video games #sorry if the post breaks i had to format this whole post on my phone. pelease clap

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diagnosed-anxiety-disorder · 11 months

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Comparing the intros to Eroica vs Wellingtons Sieg by Beethoven *fanboy screaming*

Inspired by @impetuous-impulse 's long-post essay on if Wellingtons Sieg was a certified banger or just liked because of its political ties. Very interesting, go read the post. Also literally don't worry about being socially awkward while interacting with me, my tumblr tag is literally diagnosed anxiety disorder, I understand if you get social anxiety in my notifs 😭

I'm going to put the post under a Keep reading so my mutuals don't get sieged with a wall of text on their dash ahaha

tldr: Wellingtons Sieg focuses more on imagery and takes a more cinematic/patriotic approach, sacrificing a bit of melodicism. While Eroica is very lyrical and musical, having a steady motif that it grows on, but I wouldn't know that it's about war if someone didn't tell me. Both pieces focus on different aspects of musicality and in their own domain, they perform quite well. I like Eroica more since it's more musical in my opinion, but Wellingtons Sieg is also really dramatic and cool. This is just my personal taste. I recommend listening to both and formulating your own opinion! Both pieces really do sound very Beethoven-esque though

ok coming at this from a musician's perspective and not a historical perspective (since there's plenty of you history buffs out there haha). I had to play a bit of Eroica for an orchestra audition and I just took the time to listening to a bit of Wellington's Victory and sight read the conductor's sheet music. I will now proceed to do a long post looking at the intros of Eroica and Wellingtons Sieg because I don't have the time to listen to both of them in their entirety right now

Just going to put it out there, Eroica and Wellingtons Sieg are both in Eb Major, which is practically known as the heroic key, but that's probably because of Beethoven. The only difference is that Wellingtons Sieg first starts in Eb, then goes to C major (bright and festive) then goes to B major (in this use it's similar in mood i think to C) and then it goes back to Eb.

First of all, I will tell you right now that I like Eroica more than Wellingtons Sieg. Not only am I biased but I've actually listened to Eroica in its entirety multiple times.

At the start of Wellingtons Sieg (after the dramatic snare drum and trumpet fanfare thingies) you have this nice cute little motif. The motif actually ends after the down beat in measure 8 but I wanted to include the crescendo poco a poco. Anyways, this is in Eb and it's backed up by a bunch of quarter note Eb's on the down beats as well. It's a simple melody and it kinda feels like a marching song honestly. During the whole crescendo part it kinda does a whole developmental twisty thingy with the motif and then lands on a forte and it ties it all together at the end with a small recapitulation of said motif. This whole intro just feels like the army marching into battle and whatnot.

Eb Major motif ^^^ I really like it! The staccatos and major key makes it feel very bouncy and lively

Then Beethoven decided that the army is not done marching actually and he's actually going to change the time signature entirely, giving the next upcoming C Major section an entirely different feel. In fact, an entirely different melodic motif, because it makes it ✨interesting✨. So after an even longer period of the snare drum going insane in a triplet-based time signature and then the trumpets follow up with their loud repeated notes since trumpets are good at doing that, then we have another motif!

C Major motif ^^^ (pretend like there's a quarter note C in the invisible measure 8, it was written on a different page so i had to cut off the resolution im sowwy) .

Similar to the first motif, it also has a light and bouncy feel with all the staccatos. The grace notes play a similar role as the 16th notes in the Eb motif as well. I mean, C is the 6th of the Eb major key, but I don't know enough music theory to know the significance of that :/ (im taking AP music theory next year though!!!). So this motif repeats itself a bunch of times in different modulations in 3rds (i think) while the violins either do nothing or echo the melody. Very big focus on the band, especially brass probably.

And then... we get into the part that is probably when the army actually reaches the battlefield. Now, we have our two soldiers right, the Eb motif and the C motif. These two soldiers were obviously on the front lines and got brutally one-shot killed by artillery or something because in the B major section there is literally no motif at all!!

Ok, these two screenshots are 11 pages apart. Beethoven wanted to torture the violinists for a bit. He's literally doing what Wagner did for Ride of the Valkyries where he turns the violins into little Christmas ornaments and gives the brass section a field day. Moments like these are the reason why most of the violinists I know wish they picked the cello instead because wow look at all those juicy quarter notes and long notes ties, very chill. Also the second page that I screenshotted is when the key shifts from B major to Eb major. It's not written in the key signature but the accidentals suggest that the key is different because Beethoven wanted to make sure that no violinist was sight reading on the day of the concert, which is totally something I've never done before (haha... sorry maestro 💀)

I don't think you really need to read sheet music to understand what's going on. The winds are just holding long dramatic notes while the strings are having a stroke. This part of the piece is very cinematic and it very much sounds like the background music for a 1800s based war movie. A lot of times when pieces are based on.. uh... "things" they tend to ditch melodic lines for foley impressionistic sounds. There was this one concert I went to for my city's philharmonic orchestra and they played a piece based on Nazi Germany and they literally used two metronomes that were going off asynchronously as apart of the piece. I mean, the piece was very 1900s modern so... but that's the only example that's at the top of my mind right now.

What I'm trying to say is that there's no melody. Or at least there's no clear lyricism or melodic line that you can pinpoint, or there's no sense of melodicism that I can find with my mediocre knowledge of music theory and composition.

Overall, the intro of Wellingtons Sieg is very cinematic, in its sense that the musical lines paint a picture of the army marching to battle and then roughhousing it on the front lines in the section I just talked about. I really liked the motifs at the beginning, I hope Beethoven recapitulates on them at the end of the piece :(

Alright onto Eroica– I love how it just jumps just straight into the theme after the grandiose entrance. I love the intro to this piece so much, the cellos have such a beautiful rich tone with the arpeggiated Eb 2nd inversion chord while the strings just have a bubbly metronomic portato touch, it's so satisfying. Then when the violin I's take over with the G to Ab dotted quarter notes and how it just leads into the next phrase. Then the end of the first motif is on the same beat as the repeat of said motif but the woodwinds play it instead, contrasting from the deep cello sound to a more free and gentle tone it's really beautiful.

Just listen to the Berlin Philharmoniker play it, they do such a good job with the phrasing and musicality. The Berlin Phil is one of if not the best orchestras out there in my opinion. Each section is so in time with each other it just sounds like a one person powerhouse from each instrument. I wish I can play in an orchestra even a fraction as well-refined as them one day. Nothing wrong with my school's orchestra, it's just aaaa Berlin Phil <333

I don't know where this happens in the sheet music, but after some developmental stuff building off of the Eb major chord motif that is juggled between the sections, the strings lead up to a tremolo-d Eb note and then the brass takes over and plays the Eb chord motif. It's so grandiose and probably sounds amazing live.

The melodic line moved from a soft but rich tone from the cellos to a calm interjection from the violins, sounding like a sigh that is carried on by the woodwinds. The woodwinds take their own artistic spin on the melody as the violins gradually crescendo in anticipation to the climax of the exposition. At the peak of the phrase, the brass section majestically explodes and sound goes everywhere and it's just... Beethoven. The piece feels like a really nice hug

With that being said, I kind of focused on two different things for the two pieces. Wellingtons Sieg tells a story through its music while Eroica is more melody based. Wellingtons Sieg does a great job on portraying a certain patriotic feel through its use of percussion and the brass section. It gets its point across that it is about a heroic war victory, listening to the piece is like watching the battle unfold in front of you. While Eroica, ah Eroica... it's majestic in itself. I don't know how else to describe it other than it really sounds like Beethoven. The way he stamps the epic Eb major motif all over the place and plays with the notes, always making it interesting, it's so nice to listen to.

These two symphonies are both musical in their own way. I believe these two symphonies were written roughly a decade apart, so a lot could've happened to Beethoven personally to influence how he sounds. Wellingtons Sieg definitely has its patriotic zeal thoroughly seasoned across the score while Beethoven's heart bled out on the pages of Eroica.

They're both beautiful in their own special Beethoven-esque way. I'm not historically educated enough to tell you what the audience of the time would prefer but what I think is the most important is to know your own opinion. Like how you don't read a book, the book reads you, music is interpreted differently for every pair of ears, or singular ear (not discriminating van Gogh). Music is for everyone, but at the same time, not for everyone. No matter the political introjections or emotional ties, art will always be art and will be seen differently by any audience. I think it's more important to just experience the music for yourself and figure out what you like.

Alright, this post is long enough. I'm not familiar with making long posts so I have no idea if I did this correctly ._. Thank you for reading this in its entirety if you did, I really appreciate it!

All this talk about Beethoven is making me want to relearn the Beethoven Sonatas I was working on on the piano and violin. Anyways, I gotta study for one of my final exams that is... uh... tomorrow.. and I totally studied for it hahaa.. ha... ... please wish me luck, I need it

ok, I'll shut up now, 再见

The End !

#ludwig van beethoven #classical music #wellington's victory #wellingtons sieg #eroica #eroica symphony #classical music history #music theory #music analysis #long post #ranting #symphony #eroica vs wellingtons sieg

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terrified-spider · 3 months

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To CoS DMs,

What sort of stuff do you make a point of including when changing Strahd's diary?

I've never been fond of 5e's handout, it feels far more like a lore drop than a personal diary, and while using I, Strahd would be nice, I've made too many changes to the lore to use it as is. (not to mention that my players and I are all busy, and won't have the time to read a full novel)

I've outlined the key elements that need to be included, I just need to pad it out a bit.

Thank you for any help (:

My current outline is under the cut (:

cw for canon typical depression and violence

Taking Castle Ravenloft:

Summary of the arrival at the castle, naming it after his mother, in her honor

With the death of their parents, Sergei will be coming to the keep

Introduction to Alek and Rahadin, the two working and training together

Meeting Tatyana:

Introducing our sexy lamp

Passing mention of Sergei giving up his place in the clergy for her

Focus on Tatyana's physical traits, her hair in particular. As much as the lamp thing is a joke, she isn't important to Strahd as a person, only a prize. As Strahd is really the only source of information on Tatyana for the party, she doesn't really get much in terms of development.

Alek has raised concerns once again about the assassin

Tatyana & Sergei, Wedding Prep:

Strahd moping while Sergei and Tatyana have a good time.

Mention of Alek going to the Amber Temple for research purposes, to find something that might help the situation.

Night Before the Wedding:

Strahd is starting to hear whispers

Alek and Rahadin have been patroling the castle, questioning the guards, etc.

Wedding Night Aftermath:

Quiet castle, only him and Rahadin alive.

Some sacrifices had to be made, but Alek is still alive, gifted to Rahadin, so that the two can remain brothers.

Alek died as he does in I, Strahd, but is the first Strahd brings back from the dead. He botches it though, and Alek returns as a Nosferatu, rather than a spawn. Strahd is denying the problem, shrugging off the issue as best as he can. He's good at it.

Meeting Marina:

The only section I've fully written out so far, but still up for revisions.

I returned to Castle Ravenloft late yesterday evening with no issue. Rahadin was right, the girl looks exactly like my dearest Tatyana did, with the same red hair and bright eyes. I do not think I know the entirety of what happened to her in the years since her death in the Mists, but she did not remember who she, or perhaps more importantly, Sergei or I, was.

Now, she goes by Marina, and is the adopted daughter of the burgomaster in Berez, Lazlo Berezovich, who plans to marry her in just a few years. Of course, i cannot have such things happen to Tatyana, no matter what name or face she wears now, and I have already begun to teach her of her old life. She seemed invested, though that might simply be due to the prospect of minor nobility taking romantic interest in her. Still, even with having only spent a night with her, the results seem promising. My brother will not have any influence this time, and at long last, Tatyana will finally be mine.

Rahadin also brought news of the Abbot, the “angel” having taken up residence in the old monastery in Krezk, where I had found Leo Dilisnya. While Tatyana is of the highest priority, I will have to visit Krezk soon, to finally welcome our newest guest. Even if his healing magic has been greatly exaggerated, his presence should provide at least some degree of entertainment for myself, and perhaps some assistance for Barovia’s people.

Death of Marina:

Most recent event in journal, so that it works out when Strahd leaves the diary buried under the monument to Marina. A good segment of unmarked pages are left at the end of the journal.

Cursing the men who killed Marina, description of their bodies after their deaths.

#spider's dming tag #dnd prep #curse of strahd #strahd von zarovich #tome of strahd #i strahd #alek gwilym #marina cos #cos #dm prep #suggestions welcom!

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sessakag · 1 year

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When you think about it, Sakura was kinda a terrible friend. There’s not one friend she didn’t emotionally or physically hurt (unintentionally or not). Naruto was her main target and I can see why people dislike her for it. She always made everything about her or about Sasuke.

She cut Ino off bc of Sasuke. Called her a pig and everything. She knew Hinata loved Naruto and even says it herself when looking at her being hurt but then go and hugs him during Pain arc (still to this day I feel like Kishimoto did her dirty bc he had Hinata almost die for him just for him not to do anything with it. That hug or moment should’ve been with Hinata. Kishimoto did her dirty so many times even in The Last). If any girl did that to Sasuke, Sakura would not like it at all. Not only that, she tried to emotionally manipulate Naruto (knowing again Hinata loves him) and gets mad when he didn’t fall for her idiotic plan. She left Kiba, Lee and Sai unconscious in an unknown territory to pursue Sasuke alone just to not go through with the plan. Not only did she put herself in danger, had to be saved by Naruto and Kakashi, but she also put her teammates lives in jeopardy.

I couldn’t stand her for all of these reasons and more. Her bad moments outweighed her good moments for me. What do you think of her? I don’t hate her but I also don’t like her in canon

Before I start this, letting everyone know, I'm not looking for a debate about my personal opinion on this character, been there done that not doing it again. Do not @ me with rebuttals or arguments about her. My opinion is set in stone. I'm merely answering this ask. If you like Sakura, keep liking her, you don't need me to like her too in order to do that.

Now.

I make it no secret that I do not like canon Sakura.

I don't like her on a fundamental level.

To me, her personality was extremely annoying, shallow, unnecessarily cruel at times and overall repugnant. She was selfish, mean and whinny for way too long in the show with no real reason that I found palatable. She had moments in the original and Shippuden where she seemed to turn over a new leaf and showed a glimpse of what she could have been, but then she'd completely undermine her progress with the behaviors and actions you described, anon, and I couldn't ever get on board with her. She was a lot better in The Last and for once I found her decent, but it wasn't enough to change my mind about her overall.

She's just missing key components for me to enjoy her character.

The Naruto world has a lot of flawed characters, people that did bad/morally questionable things or had abrasive and distant attitudes, however, a lot of them were relatable and sympathetic due to their tragic backgrounds or them being forced into a terrible situation, not excusing their actions, but their situations prompted understanding and empathy for what sent them down the path of darkness or hatred in the first place. Their story made it possible to like them as the flawed humans they were. Gaara, Sasuke, Zabuza, Nagato, Konan, even Neji, these are people that did bad things, but when you look at them in their entirety, past and present, there's a thread of understanding that makes your heart bleed for them.

Then, I look at Sakura's behavior, check out her past and present and I'm like 😒why tf are you so mean and nasty???? She got teased about her forehead as a kid sure, but had Ino there to help her work through it, then she got into a spat over a guy and ended a friendship...

I'm sorry but that does not garner any understanding or tolerance of her behavior from me at all. To me, the violence she visited on Naruto FREQUENTLY, the insults and selfishness was a part of her personality, not some lingering trauma that needed healing, or a defense mechanism she'd built up as a way to protect herself, she was just mean and that is why I found her repugnant.

There's no excuse for it.

Choji, Kiba, Shikamaru didn't treat Naruto like trash, there was no reason for her to do it other than her nasty personality. They were all around the same age so the 'she's a kid and didn't know better' is out the window. For all her flaws, Sakura is a very smart character, she knew how to be kind, she did it for Sasuke all the time. She was kinder to Lee faster than she was Naruto.

There's no excuse I'm willing to hear. I didn't like her behavior then, I don't like it now, and no amount of twisting words, bullying or arguing is going to change my stance on it (though many have tried, lol) I think if fans of her want to be upset with anyone, be upset with Kishsi who butchered her rather than the people that didn't like the butchered character he served them. He made her distasteful to a lot of people and never, imo, rectified it in a meaningful way and I don't think people are wrong for not liking her.

So that is what I think of her.

I hate canon Sakura, original through Shippuden, but I like her potential which I think really presented itself in The Last.

Sakura is my second most hated character personality wise, RTN Hinata is number one 🤭

#ask #answer #sakura haruno #do not @ me to argue #i am not arguing about sakura #i use the block button liberally

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juniperhillpatient · 1 year

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I went through the movie and musical to get a consistent timeline for each because I know the musical changed some things around (they switched when martha's and heather m's suicides take place for one) and I think some things in the movie were put out of order (for instance, when kurt and ram die the girl approaches heather d & m in the parkin lot to say school's canceled. the next scene has flem sayin they were in a similar position on monday, and the principal saying they're going to write off that day and then on friday ms.flem can hold her thing in the caf.) it's implied the funerals are very quick to happen because after chandler dies (on saturday) veronica's parents are like "how's the first day [of school] after heather's suicide like?" and at the end of the scene veronica's like "i gotta motor if i want to be ready for that funeral" she's still wearing the same clothes she was at school and also when she meets big bud dean. later after killing kurt and ram in the car she asks jd if they can "make an ice run before the funeral" for her hand.

the only thing i couldn't place is when jd goes to blackmail duke after veronica breaks up with him. either a monday or tuesday. because the pep rally is clearly stated on friday, which means mac's attempt and veronica's fake suicide was on thursday, and martha's attempt was on wednesday. wednesday is also when veronica invited betty to play croquet with her. the part where duke surprises veronica at chandler's locker takes place the same day as when jd gives her the red scrunchie because she's wearing the same pink turtleneck. just don't know when that is. the week before, on the friday was when veronica broke up with jd because that was the same day of fleming's assembly, and veronica's like "that thing this afternoon!"

the musical though? i can't place the entirety of the second act. if we're following the movie, me inside of me leaps from saturday the 23rd to monday the 25th, veronica meets big bud that same day, goes on that double-date with kurt ram and the heathers that same night, gets slut-shamed the next day on tuesday the 26th, and kurt and ram are dead wednesday morning on the 27th. end of act one. we're definitely in october after that but no idea how far and that fucks me up immensely lol. the timeline that one user wrote is inaccurate because it treats the "30 hours to live" part literally, not to mention when veronica's mom asks if they have big plans "tonight" veronica mentions the party at ram's. so. it's not a "plot hole" that they go from sunday back to saturday, act one was very linear. it's act two where everything goes off the rails.

(the things i do to write a fucking fanfic though,,, help!!)

also did your school have pep rallies? ours held them at the end of the day, iirc classes were shorter to accommodate because they were mandatory and took place at the very last hour before it let out. ngl i just skipped them lmfao. in the movie after veronica fake-hangs herself it cuts to everyone arriving to school. but by the time the movie ends it seems to be the end of the day so i'm not exactly sure how the hell that works either.

Oh wow I’m so impressed that you went through & created a whole timeline! I love it!

No I always low key thought pep rallies might just be a movie & tv show thing tbh 🤣 But I guess you had them! And they were mandatory? So weird.

Anyway thank you for putting this all together, this was an impressive amount of research!

#heathers #heathers the movie #heathers the musical #heathers anon

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lucivar · 2 years

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For the writer asks, prepare for bombardment!

3, 11, 13, 19, 22, 39

P and Q ♥️

~~~

Thank you so much for the submission @sweetsoundsofignorance! 😭 tumblr hates our love and has refused to let me comment on any of your replies so I will spam your asks later with dumb jokey reflections 🖤

Answers under the cut!

3. What is your writing ritual and why is it cursed?

Cursed or awesome? I spend WAAAAY too much time making myself playlists and picturing scenes for graphic novels, I shirk writing to draw elaborate scenes no one will ever see, I make mood boards, storyboards and folders for reference, I must write at least 70% of a long fic before I publish the first chapter, I have always been aggressively obsessed with schedules, which I am now learning to chill the fuck out. For my own fic, thinking of character names and appearances takes up my whole life, and writing lore can be a job unto itself. I forget time and space exists when I write and will go a whole day without food some times. I get up at any time in the night when inspiration strikes and jot down thoughts like an insane person.

11. Do you believe in the old advice to “kill your darlings?” Are you a ruthless darling assassin? What happens to the darlings you murder? Do you have a darling graveyard? Do you grieve?

Hahahah I kill so many darlings, some of them on whim. I keep a detailed graveyard of darlings, with completely new drafts for each major plot change (of which there are usually 5 = pentagram = devils symbol = cursed) and completely new drafts for major chapter breaks or consolidations. I keep an 'offcuts' chapter that is organised by run scene so I can find content again if I need. I think I have been most ruthless with Undue, and have more deleted text than included text, but it's great because I read it with a vindictive thrill knowing how many darlings I murdered to get to this point. I am at a point with Undue that I had three options for the ending and I wrote myself debating points for each side to see if the one I chose was the strongest. The other two were slaughtered. 🖤

13. What is a subject matter that is incredibly difficult for you write about? What is easy?

I think certain characters are easy than others and certain scenes are easier than others, but I think this is a hard question to answer in entirety because I tend to select stories and plots I find exciting, so I never really work on anything truly 'difficult'. Over time, I pick different things to focus on - Inevitability was a study in how two very incompatible people could be smashed together, Summer Shivers was plot by dialogue (which was weird for me), Viper was extremely detailed mystery, and Undue is plot by emotional spiralling (so much fun!). I find at the moment, in Undue, I have difficulty/joy in expressing exactly what I want to say and how I want to say it, but that's where the enjoyment and learning comes from!

19. Tell me a story about your writing journey. When did you start? Why did you start? Were there bumps along the way? Where are you now and where are you going?

Answered here!

22. How organized are you with your writing? Describe to me your organization method, if it exists. What tools do you use? Notebooks? Binders? Apps? The Cloud?

I know you think I am really organised, but I don't think I have optimised my system yet so it all feels very haphazard...

I use boards and coloured postit notes to block out the narrative storyboard, including key clues to the character, key clues to the audience, key main character interactions/feelings so I can glare at it for a while to make sure the flow makes sense.

I block out an outline in high-level action/feeling statements, usually dictating where I want to end the chapter (peak mystery or devastating cliffie). I use notes app and actual note books to jot down ideas and flow of chapters, which I then parse into my outline.

For certain technical things (e.g. historic weaponry, detailed lore- or, in the case of Viper Radio - a goddamn 'murder' board) will create step by step folders with colour-coded notes that detail to me what I as the author should know, versus what my characters and readers know. Reading this now seems peak psycho, thank you 🖤

39. What keeps you writing when you feel like giving up?

Other, adjacent creative activities, like research, world-building and art. I love researching and I am a very curious person, so can spiral into aspects of a story trying to get to the bottom of some niche point, or spend hours writing lore and history (complete with timelines, historical figures, religion and present-day myth) or spend hours drawing my poor little meow meows.

Also reading, commenting and drawing fan art helps me too! Appreciating other's work (esp. yours), lore, research and trying to convey that in creepy art is always inspiring!

#submission #sweetsoundsofignorance #loveeeee

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edoro · 2 years

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11, 12, 13

11) do you write scenes in order or do you jump around?

in order! i have tried writing non-chronologically before, but it just does not work for me at all. if i try to go back and fill stuff in, then by the time i try to connect the two parts up, something has usually changed on me, or else it's just a slog.

(putting this under a cut because my answer to number 12 got really long!)

12) do you outline your fics? if yes, how detailed are your outlines? how far do you stray from them?

i do! exactly how detailed my outline is depends on how long the fic is going to be, but regardless, i have a process.

first i start off with my broad concept - "what if Hunter didn't get the key at Eclipse Lake?" or "what if Luz ended up getting stuck in the past with Philip for a while?"

next, i figure out the scope of the actual plot here. for paint the blood, it's enormous, and required much additional outlining. for 'but he talks like a gentleman', it was mostly a matter of figuring out how to get across all the relevant parts of that scenario without committing to another 100k+ longfic.

once i have the scope figured out and an approximate idea of where i want to start and where i want to end up, i start to drill down, and walk myself through it. at first i just throw down everything that i know, and note anywhere that i don't really know what happens or only have a vague idea. once i've done that, i go back and figure out how to connect stuff. i tend to think of outlining as a series of if-then statements - x happens so then y happens so then z happens, and so on, and in order to have my outline complete, i need to know every link in the chain there

once i have THAT done, i start going to either the scene or chapter level (depending, again, on how long it is - 'but he talks like a gentleman' only has a few scenes, paint the blood has something close to 20 chapters some of which are legitimately longer than the entirety of the other fic!)

for chapters, that's just a chunk of related events that occur within the same timeframe - i usually don't pick my actual chapter splits until i have it all written, but grouping it that way helps me get a handle on story beats and pacing and all.

within a chapter outline, once i start writing, i will have individual scene outlines - so like, let's take the prologue of paint the blood. the chapter outline is something like this:

-Amity and Eda beat Hunter -they leave him for Kiki and she drags him back to the castle -Belos is pissy and Hunter gets punished -next morning, Hunter wakes up and oh no! he's been found out about his secret palisman

and then each of those bullet points would be a scene, and i'd further expand the scene when i'm writing it, to map out specific character interactions, dialogue (especially if there's a long or twisty conversation, i make a note of who says what in order to keep it straight in my head), and this is also the level where i make notes to myself about what characters are thinking and feeling and etc, so those would become something like this:

-Hunter has Amity cornered, but then Eda flies in; he can't beat both of them, and ends up getting pinned; Eda captures Flapjack; she and Amity discuss what to do with Hunter and decide to leave him tied up but let Flapjack go to release him once they're safely away

-Hunter almost thinks he's going to get away, but then hears Kiki coming; he convinces Flapjack to leave; he thinks Kiki is going to kill him and braces himself for that, but Kiki has a much worse plan in mind: she's going to drag him back to the Emperor in disgrace, making him look terrible and herself look good; he doesn't really talk much on the trip back but when they get to the castle he asks her how she found out that he's related to Belos

-Kiki and Hunter get called into Belos's study to report to him, he's half-awake and pissed off about it; Kiki goes first and ends up spinning it to make Hunter look incompetent and like her rescuing him fucked up the whole operation, leaving him to either disagree and therefore admit he was trying to sabotage her or agree with her version of events; Belos is emotionally manipulative and horrible, then sends Kiki away to deal with Hunter privately; Hunter gets switched and then there's some creepy aftercare, and then he gets sent to bed

and so on!

as for how much i deviate from them... it depends! usually not a whole lot, but the story itself tends to change on me a lot. i go chapter by chapter and scene by scene, and i often end up updating my outlines as i go - i have several different outline drafts for paint the blood, because it's a long-term project. i find that during my first drafts, i'm very much telling the story to myself, so i'll get a few chapters in and realize i wanted to foreshadow something three chapters ago and make a note to myself to go back and do that, or i'll get an idea for how to introduce something that'll be relevant to a later plot point and make a note about that, etc.

but generally my outline is like... how i have any idea what to write at all. i do all the work of figuring out what direction i want to take the story in as part of the outlining process, so the outline, for me, is taking it from "swirling cloud of ideas" to "actual thing i can write down and share with people", so i don't tend to deviate significantly from it once i'm at the point of a chapter or scene outline.

sometimes i do! i sometimes add scenes, remove scenes - in the most recent Huntlow fic, for instance, that last scene was actually going to have Hunter trying to Fuck Willow Like He Thinks A Good Boyfriend Should, but then i decided that the whole conversation flowed way better if that never even got started, so it didn't

but for the most part, i stick to the outline.

13) do you listen to music while you write? if yes, what have you been listening to recently?

sometimes! i can't listen to anything with comprehensible lyrics, though, so i mostly listen to various -core and -wave type playlists. i am especially fond of dark synthwave, sovietwave, and also various lofi youtube channels.

#asks

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shazzeaslightnovels · 2 years

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Youzitsu 4

Author: Syougo Kinugasa

Illustrator: Tomoseshunsaku

Label: MF Bunko J

Release Date: 25 May 2016

My Score: 4/5

English Release: Seven Seas Entertainment is currently releasing this series in English under the title of Classroom of the Elite.

The class is relaxing on the cruise ship after their victory last volume when they get a message from the school directing them to go a certain room at a certain time. There, they discover that the "special training” isn’t over yet. This time, students from different classes are distributed into groups based on the Zodiac. One of the members of the group is chosen to be the VIP (this is the term that the wiki used and I can’t think of a better translation for 優待者) and the rest of the members of the group has to guess who it is. There’s a high reward for guessing correctly but there’s also a high reward for the VIP and their class if no one guesses correctly. We follow Team Rabbit, consisting of Ayanokouji, Kei, Yukimura, Ibuki, and Ichinose, among others.

I have mixed feelings on this volume. On the one hand, it’s very interesting and incredibly readable. On the other hand, Ayanokouji crosses the line for me several times in this volume. Like I get that he’s an amoral character and that’s why he’s interesting but he goes too far here and it made the volume more unpleasant to read. I’ve thought this before but now I really hope Ayanokouji’s scheming blows up in his face sooner or later. Spoiler warning but the volume tackles bullying, suicidal attempts, and sexual assault and it does none of it well. Usually, this would be enough for me to hate a volume but the volume was just so intriguing and gripping that I ended up enjoying it a lot regardless. It’s been a while since I’ve wanted to continue reading a light novel so much and it may have started to reignite my passion for the medium a little bit. As for Kei, while she does get a lot of development, I still can’t say I quite understand why she’s as popular as she is so I’m guessing that there’s more development with her to come and I’m looking forward to it. I did really enjoy getting to know why Hirata is the way he is as that was something that really intrigued me while I was watching the anime. btw, I didn’t figure out who the VIP was, mostly because it seemed too obvious so I immediately discounted them as an option, but I did figure out most of the trick that Ayanokouji used in the climax to conceal their identity so I’m a little bit proud of myself for that.

Adaptation Notes:

Remember how I said last time that most of episode 8 of the anime was either anime original or adapted from later volumes? Turns out, some of that was from this volume but changed to suit the context. I will say that I am curious as to how the the anime is going to adapt this one and the later volumes. There are going to be two more seasons, presumably each will be 12 episodes and it’s announced that they’re going to adapt the entirety of the first year series and consists of 11 main volumes and 3 side volumes. Given that the first season adapted the first 3 volumes and assuming that none of the side volumes are vitally essential to the story, that’s 8 volumes that they’re going to have to adapt across 24 episodes. This means that each volume will likely be adapted in just 3 episodes each. This volume on it’s own is very complicated and will be hard to compress into 3 episodes and I imagine that the future volumes are even more so. It’ll be interesting to see where they make the cuts.

The next volume is a side volume which I already own but I’ll take a bit of a break before I read it.

#Youzitsu #classroom of the elite #syougo kinugasa #tomoseshunsaku #mf bunko j #4 stars #June 2022

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old-archivist · 2 years

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Antiva Köppen Climate Map and the Nerd Deep Dive to Go With it

Hello, I'm back and I have a nerd deep dive for you. This time featuring our ever so mysterious and romantic Antiva. Homeland of our beloved Zevran and Josephine. The coffee and trade capital of Thedas, and the site of demise of the fourth Archdemon Andoral. (I'm going to bring this up later. It's a rather big thing, to me at least.)

[Image Id: A multicoloured climate map of the fictional country Antiva from Dragon Age. Right side has the colour key for the climate zones of the map.]

This is going to be a really long post so everything is going under the cut. Topics being covered are:

Climate Zones

Trade

Flora

Fauna

Climate Zones

First thing you may notice is that this map is a little different from my original projects. Well, that is because I overlooked a rather significant detail:

The Fourth Blight ended in Antiva’s bean belt/tropical zone.

So what I originally projected to be tropical savanna and tropical monsoons, even a bit of rain forest, looked like this.

[Image ID: A multicoloured map, the top portion being largely green to denote a tropical climate area. Half way down turns orange denoting a change to a more arid and desert climate.]

I was expecting a more widespread coverage given the location of the area and all the potential precipitation levels. This was also back before most of my in depth research pertaining to the popular exports of Antiva, such as coffee.

But all of what I had planned, while plausible for the area, was likely wiped out during the Fourth Blight. The official maps I was referencing as a base line, to keep this as close to canon as I could, actually make it a fair bit difficult to realize this at first glance.

[Image Id: The Bioware Official map showing Antiva and the colours of the landscape.]

I thought it was a greyish-green type landscape. Mountainous perhaps but overall the appropriate climate zone. That is until I colour picked it and realized it was the same grey colour as the Sea of Ash on the other-side of the Gamordan Peaks southwest of Orlais.

In case you aren’t familiar with it, a Blight isn’t just devastating because of the Blight itself or even the darkspawn. When a Blight hits it impacts an area’s rainfall. Despite the arrival of an Archdemon on the surface heralding unnatural dark clouds, the clouds are simply to provide shelter from the darkspawn who fear the sun.

These black storm clouds offer next to no rain, and as time wears on, the surface water in the area evaporates. So rivers run dry, the land going through a desertification process from the sudden and prolonged drought that begins killing off plant life. The deteriorating climate leads to other effects as the Blight takes hold of the weakened plant and wildlife; mutating what has managed to survive.

This leads to many unnatural deserts and arid climates in Thedas, especially in areas heavily impacted by Blights. As we see with the Western Approach in Orlais, the Silent Plains between Nevarra and Tevinter, and the entirety of the Anderfels. And from these areas we can tell just how long it takes for areas to recover if at all.

So, given the area from Rivain to the Drylands shares that greyish colour, I thought it was best to regulate it as a hot steppe area. To clarify, steppes are dry, grassy plains which usually lie between tropics and polar regions. They have distinct seasonal temperature changes, cold winters and warm summers. Steppes are characterized as being semi-arid, which means they receive 10-20 inches (25-50cm) of rain in a year. Which means they have enough to support short grasses but not really enough for trees or tall grasses to grow.

This makes them mostly border climates in terms of transitioning from say tropics to deserts or mediterranean to temperate. It’s why you’ll see most of Antiva is covered in them. Because they have multiple climates that would need these transitioning zones, as well as they are a reasonable step in the potential climate recovery of Antiva after a Blight.

Now I was tempted to leave the savanna there, because traditionally they are closer to the equator and do differ from steppes in that they have hot, wet summers and only marginally cooler, but much drier winters. They also generally run warmer than steppes. I didn’t think that there was initially much reason to completely get rid of the savanna in place of steppes, given that there would be in areas that receive a lot of off-shore precipitation. But given that most of the coastal areas became mediterranean and that there was likely a lot of loss of long time water reservoirs such as lakes, rivers, and the like from the desertification of the Blight. It felt more reasonable that without the added precipitation from the large amounts of tropical rain forests and the retreat of the monsoon zones, that would dampen the recovery - even though it would be more accelerated compared to its inland counterparts. Those areas would become steppes. Because we can see such areas in Africa where the loss of rainforests and general deforestation impacts the surrounding areas.

So, what was a tropical savanna is now a hot steppe, what does that mean in the big picture? Well, for one it impacts the local flora and fauna - which I will go into more detail later; and also impacts what Antiva has to trade. A topic that will be in the following section as well. Aside from those, it impacts some of the surrounding climates.

While the Rialto Bay has its own off-shore winds bringing precipitation, it likely isn’t a lot given that I speculate that it has a cold current running through the bay. Generally speaking you will typically see mediterranean climates along cold currents and tropical regions with warm coastal currents. This is because it is more common that there will be less precipitation being blown in from the ocean. Cooler waters don’t evaporate as quickly so there is less moisture in the air. That would make most of the precipitation in the area coming from the northern shore from the Venefication Sea. Precipitation that would be lost as it goes over the tropical region on the coast, and presumably the small mountain range that surrounds the White Spire mountain. (Because mountains aren’t land features that naturally stand alone.) So if it has to cross the White Spire Mountain range, it would then leave all the steppes on the other side in what is called a rain shadow.

A rain shadow is often on the other side of a mountain, and is the side that typically sees less rain as the clouds need to release their moisture to climb higher in elevation. Now before the Blight this would still have been the case, but less so as there was likely run off water from the peaks that helped elevate the moisture to keep the area more tropical. But since the Blight, the loss of plant life, change in soil quality, and prolonged drought, it likely reached a point that there isn’t enough to revitalize the Blighted lands or alleviate the desertification. And thus the area turned more into steppes flanking the pockets of deserts and the Mediterranean coast.

I want to take this point to remind you that I am simply an amateur with an art degree who just really finds all this interesting, so I might be falling short in some areas and I highly encourage you to look into this stuff yourself. I also encourage you to have a dialogue with me about this if you think I missed something or should revise something.

That said, I also want to reiterate that desertification isn’t just a matter of sudden decrease in rainfall. I mentioned before but I want to say it more directly, that it also pairs with the degradation of the soil. With less nutrients in the soil, the area can’t support as complex or nutrient demanding plant life - such as trees and tall grasses. This means that there is less plant matter to hold it together, which leads to less water retention in the area for when it does rain, and that leads to an increase of soil erosion.

Soil erosion means things like mudslides, landslides, and massive movements of soil on areas of inclines; such as cliffs, areas leading into valleys, and on steep river beds. This also could lead to the change of rivers, the disruption of lake beds, and then an even further spread of the desertification.

So, what is the difference between hot and cold steppes? Not much really is the simple answer. A difference in average temperatures and sometimes altitude. The difference in average temperatures impact not only local plant life, but also the type of crops that could be grown there by farmers. If you want to see some real life locations of steppes for a better idea of what the areas look like or even a better understanding of all this climate talk I recommend visiting the Köppen Climate Classification Wiki.

Another caveat that should be mentioned in all of this, is that I cannot be sure of the overall landscape in terms of hills, valleys, and the like which have their own impact on the environment. While I have made some speculation based on the multiple maps Bioware has released as well as excerpts from Tevinter Nights and other Dragon Age additional media. They are just that, speculation. Which, for these maps I wanted to keep as reasonably low as I could because DA4 is lurking in the woods and could dramatically change a lot of this. If it does, I will of course be updating things because not only would that make all of this so much better but if you haven’t noticed, I like working on these maps.

Trade: Import and Exports

So, the Fourth Blight. Big, cataclysmic event, fourth of its kind, involved most nations in Thedas, went on for 12 years, and resulted in the extinction of Griffons and decimation of lands all across Thedas but most noticeably the Anderfels.

How does this relate to Antiva aside from the changes to the land I mentioned before. Well for starters, the Fourth Blight began in Antiva and was essentially the central point for the better part of those 12 years. There was a lot of destruction not only to the land but the country itself. It saw the end of the Antivan royal family at the time, the capital fell, and it decimated the infrastructure of the nation.

Yet when it was all said and done, Antiva turned its focus to rebuilding. Those efforts were more specifically focused on rebuilding the capital, Antiva City, as well as getting their sea trade industry back up. It is a coastal country and one that relies heavily on its sea trade to prosper. With a bulk of their towns and cities lining the coast, likely ports that make up part of their large trade routes, only two towns are shown inland. Further illustrating that Antiva is meant to be a nation of sea trade.

Which makes sense, given that it seems to be inspired by both Spain and Italy. Dragon Age media has depicted this in areas such as language, food, and some aspects of culture. These influences play heavily into what we know of Antiva. Both in the characters that originate from there and the snippets of lore.

This coastal country is known for their craftsmanship, wealth, and the Antivan Crows. Their primary exports being wines, coffee, spices, leather works, and jewels - rubies, diamonds, and pearls in the Rialto Bay. All these things are fairly easy to transport by sea, most hardy for long journeys and not easily spoiled. Key to trade that cannot be easily expedited. Leaving Antiva not lacking in stable exports.

But, I want to circle back to the climate for a moment and dip into a little bit of plant talk. Remember how I was expecting a much larger tropical zone in Antiva? That was due to one of their largest exports being coffee. To be so widely known for it, it would require they were able to get a steady and substantial supply of it. Even if it was exclusive to nobility, merchants, and the rich of other nations. Even as a limited supply good. It couldn’t be so limited that it was too rare to be heard of or shared by the few who could get their hands on it.

Initially, I thought Antiva lacked enough land space. Given that, Antiva is severely lacking in tropical climates save for the northern coast past the White Spire mountain. As you can see in the map below, it is roughly 450 mi2 (724.2 km2) of tropical land. I was under the impression that it was too little to produce enough coffee for them to be known for it as an export. It should be noted that the Arlathan Forest, likely rich in resources (and coffee trees), is widely avoided by all due to rumour of it being haunted, and isn't part of Antiva but Tevinter. It is simply included in the map due to its location and it being such a large area near Antiva that I felt it would be included in their map.

[Image Id: Multicoloured climate map of the fictional country Antiva from Dragon Age with a grid overlayed. The right side has the colour key for the climate zones as well as the scaling for the grid: 1 square equals 15 miles (1 Day travel)]

In regards to this map, it should also be noted that the scaling I used is derived from the fact that Ferelden has been stated to be about the size of England, roughly 50,301 mi2 (Roughly 130,279 km2). Which consequently would make all of Thedas less than 1/4 the size of all of Europe. (It’s 0.1791 the size of Europe, just saying.)

But back to coffee. My initial thoughts for its viability as an export were wrong. For, in traditional coffee farming, you can plant 450 coffee trees in one acre, and there are 640 acres in one square mile (247 acres in one square kilometer). So 450 trees times 640 acres is 288,000 trees. Multiply that by 450 and well, you’re looking at roughly 129.6 million trees. With each tree producing roughly one pound of roast in a yield and one pound of roast can yield 48 cups of coffee… Antiva can in theory produce up to 6.22 billion cups of coffee in a year.

Needless to say, Antiva can likely produce more than enough coffee. But! For a little fun speculation, and the fact that Antiva likely doesn’t grow just coffee in that 450 mi2 (724.2 km2), then how would they meet the quota of what they would need to export coffee. Well, I looked around the real world to see if I could find a plausible explanation, and I found one in Arabic coffee.

From what I found, it is suspected that the coffee plant in the Arabian peninsula, originally came from Ethiopia - as the earliest mention of it is from a legend of an Ethiopian goat herder. From there, some historians believe it was introduced to the Arabian peninsula in 675 AD, and it is certain that it existed in Yemen monasteries in the 15th century.

So, given that Antiva’s closest neighbour is Rivain, a nation with significantly more tropical land that could facilitate a steady means of production of coffee trees. I think Antivan coffee could likely be an import to Antiva if they could not produce enough coffee for themselves and to export it. So, once the coffee beans are in Antiva, the beans are roasted and prepared in a unique way - much like Arabic coffee beans, before then being exported.

In the map below, you can see that I have a part of Thedas shaded darker, I have included the Antiva climate zone map on top as reference. The shaded area of the map is all of Thedas that would potentially fall in the world's “Bean Belt”. Meaning areas that would plausibly be able to support coffee trees given they are a tropical environment.

[Image Id: A map of the continent of Thedas from Dragon Age franchise with the coloured climate zones of Antiva filled in. A top section of the map shaded darker than the rest.]

So as you can see, Rivain isn’t the only country that Antiva could get coffee from. However, I imagine it would probably be the easiest and cheapest in terms of cost, time, and shortest distance. Also likely the most reliable as from what I can tell Tevinter likely doesn’t have enough tropical spaces to support them, Seherron is a battlefield, Par Vollen doesn’t trade with anybody, and the Anderfels is one of the worst hit countries by the Blights. The Donnarks to the north of the Anderfels might be a suitable place, as Thedas gets their chocolate from there. However, I feel it would be far too expensive of an import to justify exporting it out.

Flora

So I know I just talked about coffee, and while we did dip into the whole where it grows aspect, it was primarily for whether or not it was a reliable export and if it wasn’t how to make it so. This section is more of a “Let's talk about what grows in Antiva. What we know and what we can guess.”

So as far as what is officially stated to be available in Antiva, we have:

• Coffee

• Cord-seed (Unsure of what this is exactly aside from a spice)

• Corn

• Grapes

• Olives

• Oranges

• Passion Fruit

• Pepper (Thedosian equivalent of cayenne)

All of these have been mentioned at one point or another as being found in, come from, or are grown in Antiva. All of which make sense with the mixture of tropical and Mediterranean climates that it has. As well as the sub-tropical/humid climates. The steppes would also be understandable given the potential variety of corn they could grow among other crops like olives.

So given the array of crops that we know, here are some of the following crops, also mentioned to exist in Thedas but not specific to Antiva, that might be found or grown in the country. All of these were based not on what is possible in a modern sense but in various time periods such as medieval and pre-industrial eras.

Almonds, apple, apricots, barley, beans, clover, cocoa, cucumber, date, fig, garlic, lavender, onion, oregano, palms, parsley, pear, pomegranate, rice, rosemary, sage, sugarcane, sunflower, tea plant, tomato, turnip, walnut, wheat

These plants fall either in the Mediterranean, subtropical, temperate, or tropical climates. Some even have multiple which would lend to their variety and availability throughout all of Antiva. Most of these plants are also easily cultivated in terms of technology that we know Thedas has and by extension, what Antiva has access to. Easy, reliable crops that would provide staples and most can handle a variety in soil quality as well if they were to be used as ground cover or as a crop to help restore the soil.

Along with their ease of production and availability, most of these crops would have multiple uses. From culinary to medicinal, as well as being hardy for long exports if fermented, jarred, dried, or processed in some minor way.

Antiva truly benefits from their variety in climate zones as well as the access to potentially large swaths of farm-able land in milder climate pockets. Something that occurs more towards the south and would likely be less affected than the northern regions when it comes to the effects of the Fourth Blight. Though only marginally so, which is why I don’t think all of the tropical land that Antiva has access to is dedicated solely to coffee trees. Because not only would monoculture farming like that be unheard of in the eras we are referencing, but also it would be a poor use of land for a largely trade based economy.

I say it would be a poor use of land because they wouldn’t want to flood the market and knock their own prices down. But also it would be a severe risk in a business sense. One of the negatives of monoculture is not only the increased risk of disease as all the plants are similar, close together, and are all weak to the same pests and diseases. But also because if they were to have a bad year it would have such a severe negative impact that they wouldn’t have anything to supplement it.

Monoculture farming is a modern concept, because in the era of technology that Thedas is in, they don’t have the tools to combat it. Even in our modern world we don’t have the tools to do so, we simply slow it down. But that is a separate conversation.

When it comes to agriculture in Antiva, and by extension most of Thedas. They likely rotate their crops and practice companion planting. Intermingling crops that will help restore the soil of nutrients that another crop took. Such as planting beans or any legume after or with a demanding crop like corn. Not only do the beans replace the nitrogen in the soil, but the corn can be used as a trellis for beans and peas that climb. Therefore maximizing the production of the land and producing two healthy crops.

Another reason they would practice companion planting is that some plants can fend off the pests or disease of another crop, or utilize space that would otherwise go unused. If you plant something like corn with beets or radishes in between the rows, you can maximize the production of the land.. Beets or carrots grow deeper than corn roots go. They also mature faster than corn so by the time they’re ready to harvest the corn is reaching a height that would otherwise shade out shorter crops.

Now most of these crops are Eurocentric, which is fine, however I believe you can reasonably add more variety given that Antiva is in a sweet spot of being close to the equator but also inching out of the tropic zone in the southern half. Allowing for a much wider variety than we might see.

Some crops I personally throw into Antiva that I think would be reasonable and fun are:

Alfalfa, aloe vera, amaranth, anise, bamboo, broad bean, cactus pear, carob, chickpea, durum, eggplant, emmer, hazelnuts, lentil, liquorice, loquat, mandarin, medlar, millet, persimmon, pistachio, quince, radish, sorghum, spelt, tuna (aka prickly pear), vetch, and water chestnut.

This is to name a few, as I’m still exploring the flora of other countries such as China, India, Thailand, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh.

There are numerous varieties of eggplant for example, that differ from country and climate zone. Same with radishes and legumes in general. Antiva, Rivain, and Tevinter are countries that I feel are so rich in diverse climates and in unique locations. As we can see with the existence of things such as figs, dates, passion fruit, and other flora.

Fauna

The fauna of Antiva isn’t largely known to us. We have mentioned that this is where lions originate from, that their crest is a golden drake which implies there were a great many dragons here at one point. There is mention of birds like the kingfisher, or sea gulls, which we know how varied and colourful that species of bird is.

We can also make fair assumptions in terms of what is common throughout the rest of Thedas, such as nugs, fennecs (which are seemingly modeled after fennec foxes which are native to northern Africa.). It is also reasonable to imagine things like:

Badgers, bats, boar, cobra, deer, duck, eagles, goats, hare, hyenas, the various manner of large spiders, giants, jackals, rams, deepstalkers, wolves, wyverns, bears, brontos, lurkers, adders, quillbacks, pheonix, raytooth, scorpion, vultures, and universal rodents such as rats.

Most of the fauna that has been shared in Dragon Age, has been depicted as specific to the underground, certain regions of southern Thedas, or exist in climates that simply don’t exist in Antiva. Something I hope will change in the future.

As far as speculative creatures would go, I have a few that are on my personal docket:

Beavers, gazelle, magpies, a variety of ox, pheasant, pilot whales, quail, leopards, cheetahs, addax, camels, oryx, buffalo, ostrich, lynx, foxes, african penguins, springbok, gemsbok, pallas's cat, caracal, przewalski’s horse, argali, dhole, pangolin, and bearded vultures.

I’m hoping to explore these animals to create some uniquely Thedosian ones in the future as they aren’t as easily plug and play for Antiva as some other animals are in say Ferelden or Orlais. Still, I think there is variety to be had here and would love to see it as filled as uniquely as other areas of Thedas.

Additional Maps:

[Image ID: Canon compliant map of Antiva, with a grid overlayed. Depicts trails and cities.]

You'll notice this is on a different scale than the one I shared above. This scaling is derived from the timeline that Varric gives on how long it takes Hawke to get to Kirkwall. It does make Thedas a smidge bigger but not much haha.

[Image ID: Non-canon map of Antiva, with a grid overlayed. Depicts trails, paths, and additional towns, cities, and circles.]

So!

That's the end! I want thank you for reading through all this and would like to thank all the people who helped me with this. As soundboards, math checkers, proof readers, and simply encouraging me to do this. I hope to continue making more such projects.

A big thanks to @indymillerart for helping me name towns on my meta map. Taught me quite a bit in the process as well! To @justabrowncoatedwench for helping me sort through the math of scaling both versions that I used. The 15 mile increments as well as the 38 mile increment. There was a lot of math and double checking. I'm infinitely grateful for.

And a big thanks to @ripflemeth for tagging along on the journey of making this. For proofreading and double checking things as I went.

Another side note: If you want to help out a lore nerd, if you have any information on the interactive map from the dragon age website back in 2014, such as location details in the Free Marches and north of that. Even Orlais really, please send it my way. I ask for my mapping project and my general nerdness. You can also see this post to figure out what I’m talking about.

Want to support the maps? Buy me a ko-fi Want to have high rez versions of the map for your own purposes? Visit my shop! Questions, requests, concerns about the next blight and its impact on the natural world? Me too. Send an ask!

#dragon age #map of antiva #Map Mondays #Personally Unofficial Thedosian Maps #my meta #my maps #I'm an amateur with an art degree #Long post #This is a LONG post #Blights are still magic and fuck up everything

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reids-rendering-reality · 3 years

Text

Guys My Age

Summary: Y/N is the newest addition to the BAU team and Spencer appears to have taken a special liking towards her. The only problem is, he thinks he’s too old for her. However, that’s all about to change when they share a hotel room.

(A/N: I’m such a sucker for the hotel room trope so I combined it with two of my other favourite ideas: Spencer being older than the reader and catching her doing yoga)

Type: fluff + a sexual innuendo or two

Warnings: dirty thoughts, insecurity about age, age gap, anxiety, yoga?

Word Count: 2.1K

Spencer Reid’s POV

I pulled the handle of my satchel over my shoulder as I sighed. It was a very long day in a small rural town somewhere deep in Alabama. Everyone else had gone back to their hotel room, besides Hotch and I. There was just something about this case I couldn’t get out of my mind. The feeling of being so close to the final piece of the puzzle, as if it were on the tip of my tongue but I couldn’t grip it. Yet I had to let it go for the night and get some rest. The much needed REM sleep could give me an entirely new perspective on this problem to me tomorrow. At least that’s what I hoped.

On the walk to the hotel room I was getting increasingly nervous, the more rooms I passed in the hallway. This small hotel did not have enough rooms to accommodate the whole team separately. They only had four rooms for the seven of us. JJ and Emily had immediately paired up, just like Rossi and Morgan. And Hotch being the team leader took the single room. Leaving me with our newest and youngest member, Y/N.

It’s not like I didn’t like her. That’s not what it was at all. Just, she made me a little bit nervous. She was so beautiful that sometimes I couldn’t get out any words around her. And that says a lot because I always have something to say. But as cheesy as it sounds, in some moments there is not a single fact that I can recall.

But the elephant in the room demands to be heard. She is younger than I am. And that by a lot. By exactly ten years and three months. That appears to be a lot. I don’t really know why, but that bothers me. We are both adults, but because of social conventions at our age, I feel as though it is inappropriate. Yet if I were 60 and she were 50 or I was 80 and she was 70, no one would even blink at the gap. Yet because we are young it matters. I feel sad when I think about it because I like her a lot. And when we talk I don’t notice the age gap. In fact, I’d even go so far as to say that it wasn’t even there at all.

What surprised me as I was having these thoughts and neared the room was the fact that I actually considered asking her out. Since Maeve I have not been on a single date. And who said she would even be interested in anything beyond a casual friendship or even colleagueship with me? That’s not even considering the amount of courage it would require for me to tell her. But it’s not like that would be a fruitful endeavour.

And that was the last thought I had before I reached the door to room 179. A prime number. Prime numbers would be my lucky numbers if there were such a thing.

As I rummaged around my pockets and satchel for the key card I noticed the sound of music coming through the door.

“Gotta thank him he’s the reason

That I’ll find what I’m looking for.”

I heard a woman sing over the sound of an electric guitar. I still hadn’t found my key card.

“Guys my age don't know how to treat me

Don't know how to treat me.”

My movements stopped when my brain registered the lyrics. Guys my age…?

“Guys my age don't know how to touch me

Don't know how to love me good.”

My breath hitched and I gulped, key card in hand. Did she mean that? Could it be possible that she would be interested in someone ten years older than her? The feeling of hope was beginning to form in my brain, scenarios of what could be clouding my vision. But they were quickly pushed aside by a dark storm of self-doubt. Because most people don’t listen to lyrics as closely. The lyrics to a song don’t mean anything to them. Did they mean anything to her?

I realised I had been standing in front of the door for way too long and gathered all my confidence to go inside. But nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to see. After closing the door behind me and tucking away the key card into my bag I turned around for the first time.

There she was. In the middle of the room in front of the two twin beds on a yoga mat. Her front leg was bent as she stretched her back. She was only dressed in skin tight pants and a matching bra that complimented the way her body was contorted. The soft light from the night lamp next to one of the beds made her skin glisten just noticeably as if it were glowing. I could feel my eyes widen as I my brain finally added up the pieces of what I was seeing.

“Oh, hi Spence!” she said gleefully turning her head towards mine, “I was feeling a little tense after sitting in that conference room all day. I hope you don’t mind.”

I didn’t even bother to attempt to talk, I could feel how dry my throat was and how my lips would not listen to any command I would’ve given it. So I just shook my head and pulled my eyes away from her as she moved her upper body towards the floor, holding herself up by her ellbows. I walked towards the beds in her general direction trying not to notice how gorgeous her ass looked now that her body was turned away from me. That I even had that thought surprised me and caused a blush to rise to my cheeks. I was thankful that she couldn’t see my face in that moment as I loosened up my tie. Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, my attention drifted back to the song.

“Don't know how to love me good

So I'm never going back”

There was nothing in that moment that could keep me sane. My wildest dreams could have not come up with this scenario. It felt utterly unreal.

As the song ended I saw her change positions again from my peripheral vision.

“You’re awfully quiet today,” she said while turning the music down.

I noticed panic begin to fill my brain. She wanted to have a conversation.

“I um- it’s been kind of a long day,” I said and cleared my throat, while deciding whether or not it would be a good idea to turn around towards her.

“Have you been at the station the whole time? You must be exhausted,” she responded and continued when I didn’t answer, “I thought you could show me that show you’ve been gushing about.”

How was this real life? My brain began to lose control of my executive functions as my body turned around to face her. She was now sitting on the floor, legs stretched out in front of her, her hands wrapped around her feet as she looked up at me. The low-cut top she was wearing gave me a perfect sight into the curves of her-

I dared not continue that line of thought, already flustered enough as it is.

“Really? You’d be interested in watching that?” I said and blinked.

Her lips spread into a smile, twinkling her eyes, “Yeah, of course. The way you described it makes me really curious.”

“We could watch an episode or two before going to sleep, if you want.”

I just had to take this chance. Even if I could only begin to have a friendship with her, I wanted to be close to her because for some odd reason, I couldn’t bear to admire her from afar.

So not long after, I was setting up the odd hotel room tv to watch the show. It took me the entirety of her taking a shower so that I was only standing back up when she was walking out of the small bathroom in a white bathrobe and a towel wrapped around her head. She smiled up at me as she walked past me, her hand brushing my arm so casually that I questioned whether it actually happened.

I hesitated again before sitting down on the bed. Was she going to get dressed in front of me? Because no matter how much my amygdala wanted me to see that, my frontal cortex wasn’t going to allow it. I forced myself to look through my satchel in an attempt to find a distraction as I waited for her next move. But luckily, she didn’t tempt my brain too much into overdrive.

I felt as if there was a higher power not willing to spare me for the night when she came out of the bathroom a second time, now something someone might call dressed. She was in a loose light coloured satin pyjama set that showed off her legs perfectly. And as if that were not enough to torture me for the night, she joined me on my twin bed with her bag of chips.

“I hope that’s okay with you, then we can share snacks,” she said so innocently that I almost believed it. But I could still hear the song ringing in my ears and I noticed her eyes take a short glance down at my lips as she said it. I was almost convinced that I wasn’t imagining things.

What really sealed the deal was that I noticed her scoot a tiny bit closer to me every once in a while. At first I could only feel the warmth she radiated, but after about 30 minutes I felt the bare skin of her arm against mine. My breath quickened, which I was sure she had noticed.

I knew the episode off by heart. Which was to my advantage because then my brain could run in a speed that I could barely follow. I tried my hardest to calm down a little bit, which was hard when I could feel the movement of her body as a whole-hearted laugh filled her throat.

“Y/N,” I whispered with all my courage. It was so low that I almost thought she wouldn’t hear it, but she turned her head towards me her eyes following a few seconds after.

Her eyes met mine and it was like I could feel my neurons firing electrical signals throughout my entire body. And just like that, in one swift movement she had grabbed my face by the back of my head and pulled me into her lips.

That was the first time that night that my muscles began to relax as I eased into the sensation of her soft lips moving against mine. It was as though I was beginning to lose myself in the kiss, all insecurities about her feelings towards me or my inexperience gone.

When she ultimately pulled away and rested her forehead against mine, we were both panting gently. My whole body felt warm with the feeling of her breath on my skin and her hands still in my hair. I didn’t dare open my eyes, still afraid that I would wake up from this idyllical dream.

We both didn’t know what to say as we pulled away further and looked at each other. I wanted to say something, to let her know how I felt, but once again, my brain did not follow my commands.

“Did you know when you kiss someone for the first time it causes your dopamine levels to increase for a short period of time? It also makes your heart rate and the oxygen supply to your brain to raise,” I heard my voice say in something between a whisper and my normal talking voice.

“For the first time, huh?” she grinned a little at me.

I reached for her hand and gently took it in mine. I moved her palm over my shirt to the centre of my chest. I could feel my heart race through her hands and I know she could feel it too. She looked up into my eyes again with a look on her face that told me all I needed to know.

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ironhusband · 3 years

Text

Read on AO3

Honestly, Bucky had expected that dating Sam would be easier than this.

With everything that he and Sam had gone through to finally get together, he had wanted everything to be smooth sailing once he finally had Sam. Their perfect happy ending, cut straight from the movies and into their lives. They deserved it.

That wasn’t real life, however.

When Bucky finally had Sam in his arms, there were a myriad of relationship things that Bucky had to learn. He had to get used to all of Sam's quirks and he had the entirety of Sam’s family to win over. He had to learn the way to this obscure place where Sam liked to buy his orange juice and he had to study for days to remember that Sam’s aunt liked orange jewelry. But if Bucky was honest? He didn’t mind that part. He didn’t mind getting to know what Sam was like in a relationship or meeting Sam’s family. That would never be a hardship for him.

What he did mind was that stupid fucking drone.

It all started with Sam and Bucky making out on the couch. This wasn’t unusual in itself; sometimes the news was boring and Sam and Bucky got distracted. Sucking on Sam’s tongue was more interesting than anything else, frankly.

Sam was pressed against the couch by Bucky’s hips, his hands wandering under Bucky’s shirt as Bucky took Sam’s lips between his teeth. Sam removed his hand from Bucky's shirt to run his fingers through Bucky’s hair, causing Bucky to pinch Sam’s waist. Bucky was coming up to change the angle of the kiss and-

When he looked up the drone was staring directly at them.

It took a long time for Bucky to recognize that their home was safe and not, as a reflex, shoot at any sort of intimidating sight and sound. Still, he startled and yelled, “why the fuck is your pet staring at us?!”

Sam looked back at what made Bucky exclaim and smiled at Redwing. “Oh, hi, there, little guy,” he cooed, “enjoying the show?”

“Sam,” Bucky hissed, annoyed at his boyfriend’s reaction, glancing back and forth between the drone and Sam, “he is staring at us."

Sam shrugged, wrapping his arms around Bucky's shoulders, "so?"

Bucky spluttered, exasperated, "He is recording us. How can you be so calm about this? What if he puts this on the internet?”

“He won’t put this on the internet,” Sam rolled his eyes.

“Why not?” Bucky challenged, knowing the real reason. Sam was still insisting it was Redwing who put the footage of him falling through the tree on the internet, and he was determined to make him confess it was his doing (that video got 1000000 likes!).

“Well, first of all,” Sam explained, straightening up, smug grin on, “because no one wants to see you kissing.”

“You want to see me kissing,” Bucky countered.

“My one flaw,” Sam teased, “and two, his camera isn’t on. He just likes flying around sometimes.”

Bucky glanced at the drone, whose cold, robot eyes, peeking just beneath the shell on the drone, stared back at him. “Can’t you make him stop?”

“I wasn’t listening when Stark did the seminar about the AI inside him. Lost the manual too.”

Bucky looked at the drone again, and then quickly turned away while he muttered, “there must be a deactivation code.”

“I sorta don’t want to find it,” Sam confessed, “I like his quirks.”

“But he isn’t supposed to be flying around with his camera off. It isn’t what he was made for.”

“He’s sleepwalking,” Sam said, fondly.

“He’s creepy.”

Sam gasped, “how dare you say that?!”

“Robots shouldn’t sleepwalk!”

“Redwing isn’t a robot! He’s a drone!”

“Same difference!”

“It is so not same difference. Besides, Redwing is better than just a normal robot, he is-”

He and Sam bickered for the rest of the evening and Bucky forgot all about the drone when they moved into the bedroom. But it began like this.

~~~

Bucky woke up to get milk the next morning. Sam usually got up earlier than Bucky, waking to go run. He would accidentally wake Bucky up by kissing his cheek before he went out (running reminded Sam of Steve and sometimes he needed a little reassurance), and then Bucky would burrow into the blankets for half an hour before getting up to eat cereal. Bucky liked the early hours of the day when he had the house to himself and could wake up properly before Sam would get home. Before they moved in together, Bucky had made the mistake of getting up after Sam had already returned from his run, and he didn’t have the brainpower to retort when Sam called him a heathen for pouring his milk before his cereal.

When he got up this morning, the drone was there, staring at him.

Bucky was mid-yawn when he yelped at the flying thing in front of his face.

“Holy fucking shit, man, you nearly gave me a heart attack!” he exclaimed at the drone, clutching at his chest.

“That’s not good,” the imaginary Sam in his head said, looking, amused, at Bucky’s clutching-his-pearls position, “you need to watch your heart at your age.”

The drone didn’t say anything. Bucky rolled his eyes. “What are you looking at?” he challenged.

The drone still didn’t say anything.

Bucky moved cautiously, one leg in front of the other while he watched the drone, “I’m just getting breakfast.”

The drone turned his head towards him with his every moment. The whirring, easier to hear in the quiet morning, gave Bucky chills.

He glanced once at the drone and then once at the refrigerator before deciding to ignore the robot. Even if it was creepy that his camera wasn't on but he could still follow him, what would he do? Shoot him? Sam disarmed the drone every time he was off duty. So Bucky opened the fridge and got out his milk, blocking the drone from his view with the door.

Sam hated it when he did it, but he unscrewed the milk and drank some of it (”we exchange spit regularly, I don’t see the big deal.” “You put it so romantically~”). Cold milk always helped Bucky wake up and he “ahh”ed when he stopped feeling the thirst he always felt when he was just waking up.

He shut the door of the refrigerator, and apparently, Redwing has gotten twenty steps closer.

He screamed at the drone near his face and threw the cap at him.

~~~

Turns out, Redwing’s camera was on and Sam laughed for 20 minutes at the footage.

~~~

The next time it happened, Bucky was coming home from one of his therapy appointments. The BARF sessions were always a pain in the ass (reliving his past wasn’t remotely fun) but Bucky knew he sometimes had to go to them to make sure he wouldn’t go all Winter Soldier again. Anything to keep Sam safe.

Bucky liked to come home and cuddle with his boyfriend (who usually also had an exhausting day of being Captain America) when he got home, but today was different.

A purring Redwing was found in Sam’s lap when he went into the living room.

“Hey!” Sam greeted, seeing unable to give him a welcoming kiss due to the robot in his lap, “how did it go?”

“The usual,” Bucky replied casually. He eyed the drone, “does he usually... do that?”

“Yeah,” Sam nodded, “he noticed I was bummed so he came to cheer me up. Isn’t that right, Red?”

Sam pet Redwing’s red-paint-coated shell and the robot buzzed happily.

“Weird...” Bucky mumbled under his breath and then flopped next to Sam, “why were you bummed?”

“I fucking hate the UN,” Sam announced, “excuse me for not wanting to end up at jail for accidentally scratching some rich dude’s car.”

Bucky kissed Sam’s cheek, “I’m sorry you had a bad day.”

“’ Is okay. We’ll settle it all eventually. Just wish that I didn’t have to do it.”

“No, you don’t,” Bucky pointed out, knowing how much his boyfriend loved being Captain America.

Sam smiled shyly, that smile of his that made Bucky fall head over heels for him, “no, I don’t.”

Bucky kissed Sam’s neck. Sam’s smiles would always get him soft, which meant he had to kiss every inch of him. Sam giggled at Bucky rolling the skin between his lips and he brought a hand to the back of Bucky’s head to caress his nape. Bucky kissed further down his neck, reaching Sam’s collarbone and-

Sam gently pushed him away. Redwing was buzzing irregularly in his lap.

“Hey, there, little fella, don’t be mad,” Sam tried to appease him by stroking him, “Bucky just distracted me for a moment.”

Bucky huffed, disappointed at the interruption. “Not fair,” Bucky grumbled, “I had Sam cuddling dibs.”

“Awww,” Sam teased, his trademark smug grin on his face, “are you jealous?”

Bucky huffed and pushed his shoulder, “no, I’m not jealous. I love you and your weird robot.”

Sam laughed and didn’t retort, resting his head on Bucky’s shoulder as they turned on the TV.

~~~

Bucky did get a little jealous when Sam had to sleep on the couch because he didn't want to disturb Redwing ‘napping’ on his lap. He was still jealous, despite how adorable Sam looked with the blanket around his shoulders and drooling on the backrest of the couch.

~~~

Bucky could have handled hogging Sam or Redwing hovering or wondering if the drone was recording while he and Sam were just being domestic, but he drew the line at forcing him to stay in his apartment.

“Okay, freak,” Bucky announced to the drone, “I’m going shopping. Do you need anything?”

The drone didn’t respond. Bucky pulled the jacket on and stuffed his keys in one of the pockets. The drone followed his movements as he got ready to go outside. “I’m going out now,” Bucky informed him before he turned around to leave the apartment.

The drone was staring right back at his face as he moved towards the door. Bucky didn’t jump this time, long used to how Redwing could sneak up on people. “God, how do you do that? Did Stark figure out teleportation or something?”

The drone flew mute, as always. Bucky sighed and went to open the door but Redwing blocked his hand before he could reach the knob. “Ow! Son of a bitch!” he cursed as his hand crushed against the drone, “what, what’s the matter? I can’t leave my home now?”

The drone didn’t respond.

“You know, most pets beg for their owners to take them outside.”

The drone still didn’t respond.

Bucky sighed, and reached for the door, more gently this time, and managed to successfully open the door.

Bucky cheered triumphantly, “not so tough now, huh?”

The drone didn’t show any sign that he understood but when Bucky tried to exit he blocked his way.

“Seriously?” Bucky huffed. He moved an inch to the left quickly and the drone zoomed towards him. “Seriously?” he complained and tried to move another inch, slower this time. The drone followed his painstakingly slow movements, centimeter for centimeter. “You motherfucker.”

He tried to get through the door from the left side and the right side, but wherever he went, Redwing followed him. “I’m going to walk out of this door like a normal person,” he told Redwing, “I’m not going to limbo under you, or jump over you, or fight you or anything like that, so. Get. Out. Of. My. Way.”

Three minutes later, Bucky found himself on his knees, face to face with the drone, “you know, if Sam didn’t like you so much, I would dismantle you piece by piece.”

~~~

Sam paused at the open doorway, looking at his boyfriend and his drone staring at one another.

“Are you having a staring contest?” Sam quipped, “because that’s our thing.”

“It won’t let me leave,” Bucky complained.

Sam raised an eyebrow, walking through the front door, “it? You used to call him him.” Redwing followed him, softly nudging Sam’s head and asking to be pet.

Bucky threw his hands in the air in frustration, “him is for things who aren’t menaces!”

“That’s not my experience,” Sam joked, petting Redwing as it asked.

Bucky glared at him, “that’s not funny. That drone is the executor of Tony Stark’s will and it is trying to kill me!”

Sam laughed, “don’t you think you’re being a little dramatic?”

“Two days ago, I swear I saw it give me a withering stare while it was on your chest.”

“He’s a drone, Bucky,” Sam emphasized, “they don’t have expressions.”

“Doesn’t stop him from doing all the other human stuff!”

“Bucky,” Sam shook his head, “Redwing likes you.”

Bucky scoffed, “if Redwing was armed, it'd kill me in my sleep.”

“No, he wouldn’t.”

“When’s our next battle? I bet it'll finish the job then!”

“If only I had a schedule of that...”

“That thing drives me crazy!”

“Bucky!” Sam exclaimed, “all those things Redwing does, he does because he likes you.”

Bucky blinked.

“Think about it,” Sam began explaining, “for weeks after you moved in, he hasn’t moved from his spot, but now he has suddenly decided to move?”

“It has decided it can no longer be passive about me anymore?” Bucky suggested.

“Or-” Sam suggested his interpretation, “-he decided he can trust you and he wants to get to know you.”

Bucky peaked at Redwing behind him, “seems unlikely.”

Sam raised his hands, “don’t ask me to explain his bad taste.”

Bucky looked at the drone, “it likes me.”

Sam nodded, “and unfortunately, so do I.”

"It has a weird way of showing it," Bucky pointed out.

Sam grinned, "well, so do you."

~~~

“What do I do?” Bucky whispered to Sam, panicked.

Sam shook his head. "Pet him, you moron," he told him fondly.

The drone has decided to land in his lap. Changing Redwing’s batteries was like feeding a dog, and now Redwing has decided that Bucky deserved affections. Bucky carefully put his hand on top of the drone’s surprisingly warm metal and started rubbing his hand on the shell.

“There you go,” Sam congratulated him and put his head on Bucky’s shoulder, his hand on the drone, joining the petting. He turned on the TV, “what do you want to watch tonight?”

Bucky looked at Sam, at how calm and happy he looked because of Bucky and Redwing getting along. He looked down at the drone steadily purring louder in his lap.

“Yeah,” he thought, “this is a happy ending.”

#sambucky #winterfalcon #sam wilson #Bucky Barnes #redwing #winterfalcon fic #sambucky fic #winter falcon #falcon #winter soilder #captain america #druwrites #bucky barnes x sam wilson #sam wilson x bucky barnes #marvel #MCU #fatws #falcon and the winter solider #userpavi

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weelittleweasley · 3 years

Text

june 5 (d.m.)

prompt as requested by anon: draco has always hated his birthday for as long as he could remember. but now that he was with you, you were determined to change his opinion on birthdays.

pairing: post war! draco malfoy x fem! reader, dom! draco x sub! reader

warnings: mentions of food, 18+ sexual content (minors do not interact), male receiving oral (slight face fucking), possessiveness, dirty language, lingerie, language, hair pulling, mirror play, praise kink

word count: 3.7k

author’s note: please minors do not interact with this! any and all smut on my page is meant for 18+ readers! remember consent is key!

Excitement coursed through your veins when you had realized you had woken up before the sun had even risen. Careful not to disturb the sleeping birthday boy next to you, you slithered out of your shared bed and slipped on your robe and slippers, making your way into the kitchen.

Today you were on a mission. It was Draco’s birthday and you had been planning out how the day would unfold. It was one of the first birthdays you were spending with Draco after you both had graduated from Hogwarts, so you wanted to make this birthday extra special. You knew regardless of the year, Draco despised his own birthday.

“What’s the point of it?” he would argue. “I was born. Whoopie. What do you want me to do about it?” he’d continue as you laughed. “Seriously. What the fuck is the point? We eat a cake and open presents? I can do that any fucking day. Also, I hate cake,” he’d ramble which just made you laugh harder before pressing a chaste kiss to his lips.

On the contrary, you loved birthday, regardless if it was yours or not. Celebrating someone’s life and a new year ahead of them made your heart swell with joy. Now that Draco’s birthday had rolled around, you wanted to show him how much you cared for and loved him.

Whilst the birthday boy slept, you began in the kitchen, brewing coffee, whisking eggs, and toasting fresh bread. He can’t be in a bad mood if he’s had something good to eat first thing in the morning, you thought to yourself.

As you cooked, you watched the sunlight slowly seep in through the kitchen windows of your shared flat, illuminated the dark hardwood floors. The sun warmed you up on the early June morning as you smiled to yourself. Today would be a good day. You would make sure of it.

You watched the clock tick until the hands hit eight o’clock as you scurried back into your shared master bedroom. Draco’s alarm would be going off any second and you wanted to make sure that you were the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes on his special day.

As expected the small clock on his nightstand started ringing, causing Draco to stir in his sleep before lazily flopping a hand on it to stop it from chiming that horrendous sound that signaled the start of his day. Draco stretched his arms wide, groaning as he did so, getting the sleep out of his body before rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. You sat at his feet, smiling as he did so. You had always loved when Draco first woke up; he was adorably cranky. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open as he groggily sat up. “Good morning, baby,” he growled in his raspy morning voice.

Even after being with Draco for two years, your heart still soared at the mention of a nickname he had so fondly given you. You scooted closer to your love and brushed his messy hair from his eyes, “Happy birthday, my love,” you cooed gently as Draco kissed the inside of your palm.

He groaned, “Don’t remind me,” he rolled his eyes, sitting himself up straight. “Today is a day like any other. June 5th is just a regular, ordinary day like any,” he tried to convince you as you sat there, the excitement on your face giving away everything. You couldn’t be coy. “Good Godric, what did you do?” Draco laughs, reading the gleeful expression on your darling face.

You shrugged and placed a kiss on his forehead. “Nothing at all,” you lied as Draco gave you a knowing look. You had been up his arse about his birthday and what he wanted for months and now you had just dropped it? Draco was much smarter than that to know that you had something up your sleeve. You lightly laughed, “I didn’t do anything! I just made breakfast for us like I usually do on Saturdays.”

Draco just chuckled and shook his head. “You’re a ball breaker, you that?” he tells you as you shrug. “Alright, let’s see what mess you made,” he gets up from the bed as you smile and rise from the bed, running to the kitchen to stand beside your masterpiece. “My days, stop running, (Y/N), it’s just breakfast!”

As Draco entered the kitchen, you held out your hands presenting everything before him. “It’s all your favorites!” you exclaim as Draco just shakes his head. Before you was eggs, toast, fresh fruit, and black coffee; it was simple, but you knew it was his favorite breakfast.

He walks over to where you stood at the breakfast bar and wrapped his arms around your waist. “Thank you, darling. I appreciate the gesture,” he speaks before kissing you gently, tilting your chin upwards so he can peck your lips. “But this is all the surprises for the day,” he speaks as you groan in protest. “Yes, I insist. My birthday wish is just to spend the day with you. In our flat. Relaxing. Nothing more. Nothing less,” he told you.

In a way, his request sounded really nice. You and Draco have been so busy with your jobs and working and traveling that you hadn’t taken a day in months to just be lazy. Sitting on the couch, maybe reading a good book, listening to music, laying in Draco’s lap...it sounded like a great way to spend the day.

Defeated, you sigh, “Whatever the birthday boy wants, he gets.”

Draco smiles widely, pressing another soft kiss to your forehead. “Brilliant,” he beams. “And another birthday request, don’t call me birthday boy.”

You roll your eyes, “Fine...whatever the birthday prince wants, he gets.” Draco groans as you laugh and take your seat at the breakfast bar. “Oh stop, you know you love it.”

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

For the entirety of the day, you and Draco spent in on the couch, napping in your bed, or dancing in the kitchen. The day was lazy and carefree and effortlessly fun. It reminded you of all of the little reasons why you loved him so much. Draco had gone through so much in his young life and had guarded himself up to the point where he refused to let anyone in. But when those guards came down after you two started dating, it revealed how lively and loving he was. How passionate and kind he could be. How charming and carefree he was.

But Draco still held onto some traits of his past. He was determined and ambitious. He was strong willed and stubborn when he needed to be. He was painfully loyal to those he cared for and would do whatever he needed to protect them.

Regardless, you loved Draco something fierce and he loved you with all of his might.

As the sun started to fade in the western sky, you started to clean up the kitchen from the pizza you had ordered for dinner. You had walked to the sink and placed the dishes delicately to begin washing them, but Draco had wrapped his arms around your waist. “I’ll do the dishes, my love. You’ve already done so much today,” he spoke as he rested his chin on your shoulder. “It’s the least I can do.” You spun around and gave him a gentle smile before kissing the tip of his nose quickly. “Go on,” he spoke with a swift tap on your bum.

While Draco washed the dishes, you scurried off to the bedroom and closed the door behind you. In a flash, you were peeling off your loungewear and raiding your closet to the back corner where you had hid Draco’s final present for the day. Draco had insisted not to get him anything, which you obeyed, but this present was something for the both of you to enjoy.

Lingerie wasn’t something you had purchased avidly in the past, but this was a special day and you wanted to prove to Draco just how special it was. When you had entered in the underwear shoppe, there were a plethora of underwear, teddies, lingerie, bras, and one pieces to chose from. It was a bit overwhelming at first, but you had managed to pick out something that you think Draco would like. But in all honestly, no matter what you wore Draco would love. As long as you were the one wearing them.

You stepped in front of the full body mirror and examined yourself, running your hands down the front of the bodysuit decorated with emerald green lace. The bodysuit left little to the imagination as it pushed your breasts together and up, making them spill out of the cups, hugging your figure deliciously, cut outs revealing your hips and waist. You inhaled deeply and sighed. “Better be worth the pretty penny this cost me,” you spoke to yourself.

From the other room, Draco’s voice calls, “(Y/N)? Where’d ya go?”

“Bedroom!” you call back, giving yourself one last glance in the mirror. You smirked at yourself. Damn, you looked good.

Almost on cue, Draco swung the door upon and immediately stopped in his tracks when his eyes landed on you. His eyes went wide and he smirked. “Bloody hell,” he sighed, rubbing his face as his eyes raked up and down your body. “Well, what do we have here?” he closed the door behind himself and slowly walked towards you.

You stood proudly at the mirror, a small smirk dancing on your lips. “I thought we couldn’t let birthday celebrations end so soon,” you walk towards him, placing your hands on his chest before snaking them around his neck as his hands trail up your sides, the lace dancing underneath his fingertips. “It’s all for you.”

As if Draco couldn’t be more in love with you. He let out a heavy breath as his hands trailed down your bare back before landing on your bottom. “You are all mine,” he corrects you. He takes your chin and forces your gaze on his. His blue eyes are full of lust as his pupils dilate heavily as you gulp. His gaze was enough to drive your mind in circles. “All of this belongs to me.”

Draco doesn’t waste anymore time, connecting his lips with yours as his body presses against yours. You inhale deeply as you tangle your fingers in his hair, pulling gently. His lips are hot and needy against yours, but he doesn’t let you know how desperate he is to feel you wrapped around his hard cock. Draco takes your bottom lip in between his teeth, pulling gently before slipping his tongue in your mouth, gently massaging his with yours as you whimper into the kiss. “Are you gonna be a good girl for me tonight?” he mumbles in your mouth as you nod excitedly.

You wanted Draco to use your body however he wanted to tonight. No matter how much you liked being a brat, you wanted him to completely dominate you tonight. You were surrendering to Draco.

As his lips moved against yours, he wasted no time pushing your bodysuit to the side, running a finger in between your heat making you whimper, craving his touch against where you needed him most. “You’re so wet for me already, darling,” he huskily groans with a smirk. “And we’ve only just begun.” His words make you shiver as you attempt to kiss him again, but he pulls back. “Tell me how much you want my cock inside that tight pussy of yours,” he groans.

With a small smirk, you sigh, “How about I show you?”

Draco looks at you a little puzzled, but it’s instantly resolved when you drop to your knees. In one swift motion, you pull down his grey sweatpants and boxers to reveal his stiff member hitting his stomach. You look up at Draco through your eyelashes as you pull your hair back into a ponytail, a small smile dancing on your glossed lips. Lip gloss that would sure cover his hard dick in just moments. “My sexy little slut,” he breathes out before you drag your tongue from the bottom of his shaft to the tip, making Draco throw his back in ecstasy. He hums as you start sucking gently on his tip, swirling your tongue around him, teasingly. “Don’t you dare tease me, you slut,” he groans before you take his whole length sloppily. He hisses through gritted teeth as you grab his thighs, bobbing your head up and down on his massive length, your peach lip gloss rubbing off on his dick. “Such a good whore,” he praises you as you suck on his cock, hands stroking the parts you couldn’t take. “You love sucking on my cock, don’t you?”

You hum against his cock, sending vibrations through him as he moans loudly, grabbing onto your ponytail, pushing his length further down your throat. You lightly choke on his dick, throat tightening around his cock as he groans out in euphoria. It was worth it just to watch the look on his face as you took him like this. Looking up at him through your eyelashes, sucking on his throbbing dick, humming on it, causing him to push your face onto his dick deeper, gently face fucking you.

Small tears ran down your cheeks as you eyes watered from taking him like this. But you didn’t mind at all, the condition that you had him in right now was enough to make you finish. You bobbed on his dick faster, swirling your tongue around his cock, making him cry out, “Fucking shit, (Y/N). You’re such a fucking slut for my cock.”

His words only made you bob your head faster, focusing on the tip as he shudder, the most sensitive spot making him writhe in pleasure. “I’m gonna fucking come,” he hisses as you suck on his tip, playing with his balls in your hands.

With a husky groan, you feel his come warm in your mouth, shooting down your throat as you swallow it all, licking up what you missed off of his dick. Draco is left panting, chest heaving up and down as you smirk up at him, wiping your lips with the back of your hand, satisfied with yourself and the brilliant job you’ve done.

Draco pulls you up to your feet before smashing his lips against your so he can taste himself on your peach flavored lips. His hands roughly grope your ass as you pull his shirt off, throwing it to the floor. “I want you to take me. Now,” you speak as Draco kisses down your neck across your collarbones and to the valley of your breasts.

“Gladly,” he speaks as you attempt to walk towards the bed, but he stops you. “Not there tonight,” he whispers in your ear before he flips you around to face the mirror. “I want you to watch yourself as I fuck the shit out of you,” he tells you as a shiver crawls up your spine. “How does that sound, princess?” he coos, brushing your sloppy ponytail to the side, kissing and nibbling on your neck.

You breathe out, “You better take this stupid fucking bodysuit off of me then.”

Draco chuckles deeply before speaking, “My pleasure.” He pushes the straps down your arms and slides the bodysuit down your skin, falling to the floor. There, you stood in front of the mirror, completely naked in front of your lover and he hungrily feasted his eyes on you. “You’re the most beautiful thing to ever happen on this Earth,” he breathes out before pulling your head back to rest on his shoulder as he kissed you deeply.

His large hands cupped both of your breasts as you moaned into his mouth, his fingers pinching and rubbing your hard nipples. As one hand massaged your breast, the other slithered down your stomach and in between your thighs to where you craved his touch the most. You inhale deeply as one of his slender fingers starts tracing circles against your clit as you knees buckle a little. “We just started, kitten. Don’t give out on me just yet,” he whispers in your ear as he nibbles on it gently. “I promise I’ll make it worth your while.”

You moan out, “Please, Dray, I need you.”

Draco smirked against your skin as he rubs on your clit faster, making you gasp. “You need me to what, kitten?” he teasingly asks you as you hold onto his forearms for support to ensure you don’t buckle under his touch.

“To fuck me like you promised,” you breathe out, pressing your back harder into Draco’s bare chest. “I wanna watch you fuck me.”

Your words are a symphony to Draco’s ears, his dick hard again against your thigh. In swift motion, he grabs the chair from your vanity desk and places it in front of you, bending you over so you are looking directly into the mirror. The sight of you bent over the back of a chair, Draco standing behind you, hungrily watching you was enough to make the wetness from your aching pussy drip down the inside of your thighs. Draco pulls a rubber from his nightstand and rolls it onto his thick cock as you gulp.

Draco stares into your eyes as he leans down to whisper in your ear, his chest pressed flush against your bare back. “Remember, my sex kitten,” he whispers, “I call the shots tonight. I’ll take you however I want to take it. Isn’t that, right?” he purrs as you quiver under his touch, his long finger trailing down your spine before roughly grabbing your bum in his hand. You moan out in response. “Good girl. My good little slut,” he praises you. “Good sluts get rewarded,” he starts. “Today, you’ve been very good for me, haven’t you?”

You nod your head feverishly. “Yessir.”

Draco groans at your words, dragging his latex covered dick in between your folds as you gasp. “That’s my baby,” he moans. “You want to watch me fuck you? You filthy slut,” he speaks, hands now groping your breasts again as you sigh, resting your head on the back of the chair.

But Draco pulls on your ponytail, forcing your gaze back onto the mirror to meet his eyes. “I said you will watch me fuck you,” he demands. “Did I stutter?”

“No sir,” you moan out as he smiles. “I want to watch you fuck me.”

“Atta girl,” he praises before pushing his dick all the way into you as you moan out, Draco hissing at how tight you were wrapped around his cock. “Fuck,” he breathes out. He waits a moment for you to adjust before he slowly starts rocking his hips, thrusting in and out of you at a steady pace.

He is gently panting as he thrusts in and out of you. You grind your backside against him, making him groan out. “Yeah, just like that. Just like that for me, princess,” he praises you as you do it again, pushing your ass on his groin. “Shit,” he groans before he starts to pick up the pace of his thrust, hips smacking against your backside as he takes you from behind. “Look at you. You love the way I fuck you,” he looks deep into your eyes as you watch him in the mirror, taking you the way he wanted against the desk chair.

You hum, “Yessir. You feel so good inside of me.”

Draco pounds in and out of you harder as your mouth falls agape, you panting. “I love the way you feel wrapped around my cock. Your pretty little pussy wrapped around me. I fucking love it. Fuck,” he closes his eyes and throws his head back in pleasure as you grab onto the chair tighter. Draco pushes himself impossibly deeper inside of you, reaching that one part that made your toes curl and knuckles turn white.

“Fuck, Draco!” you scream out, holding onto the chair for dear life. If you didn’t, you would surely buckle from all of the pleasure he had you in. “Right there, baby, don’t stop. Oh, fuck. Please, don’t stop!” you cry out.

Draco keeps his pace, hitting your g-spot as his grip on your hips tighten, sure to leave bruises. “You like that? You like the way I fuck you? My fucking whore,” he groans out as he pounds in and out of you. “Bloody hell, I fucking love you so fucking much, baby,” he breathes, pressing kisses down your spine as you cry out in bursts of pleasure.

“I love you, I love you so much,” you pant in between his thrusts. Draco hand drops down, finding your clit again, sending you over the edge as you throw your head back. You hold onto the chair for dear life, “Fucking shit, baby, I’m gonna come all over you.” Draco keeps railing into you, his dick throbbing at how good you felt. “Come all over me, kitten. I wanna hear you scream my fucking name,” he encourages you. “Come, baby, come, come,” he pants in between his thrusts.

A wave of warmth rushes over you as your pussy throbs, coming all over Draco’s cock and fingers as you scream out his name, throwing your head back in sheer euphoria. Your heart is thumping in your ears as you come down from your high, Draco soon following, releasing in the condom, a string of profanities falling from his parted lips as his eyes screw shut.

The two of you are breathless messes as you remain bent over the chair as Draco pulls out of you and kisses your shoulder blades, rubbing your back gently. “Bloody fucking hell,” he chuckles as you join in, chest heaving for air. Beads of sweat roll down his forehead as he cleans himself up, you peeling yourself off of the chair, your legs feeling like jelly.

Draco smiles as you suck in a breath through your teeth. He hands you your bathrobe as you gladly accept, him draping the soft material on your body. You tie the robe and smile at the glowing man before you. You cup his face in your hands and press a sweet kiss to his lips as he pulls you closer to him, smiling into your tender embrace. “Godric,” you breathe out when you pull away, him laughing. “You still hate birthdays?”

He chuckles, “If every birthday is like this one? I fucking love them.”

#Draco Malfoy #Draco #draco fanfiction #draco malfoy smut #draco smut #Draco Malfoy Headcanon #draco malfoy x hufflepuff!reader #draco malfoy oneshot #draco imagine #draco malfoy x reader #draco malfoy x y/n #draco Malfoy x female reader #draco malfoy x slytherin #draco malfoy x reader fanfic #draco malfoy x potter!reader #draco malfoy x reader smut #draco malfoy x fem!reader #dom! draco

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creativeashproductions · 3 years

Text

Subconscious Match Making // Charlie Gillespie

Summary: Kenny brings in his niece Y/N and her band to provide a demonstration of the stage presence of a band. More than happy Tarnished Poets become mentors during the process of bootcamp. Charlie’s eye is stuck on Kenny’s niece; Kenny’s so powerful he subconsciously did match making

Warning: Swearing, talk about car accident, angst, and fluff.

Words: 4.6k

A/N: The song used by my fictional band is High Hopes by the Australian band Yours Truly.

Masterlist

Being part of the audition aspect of Julie and the Phantoms was unreal, especially being young with such an opportunity. The timing couldn’t be better with the band stationed stateside for recording; Kenny had presented the offer to mentor during auditions. The capacity as a musician mentor was alien, but you would do anything for the guy you considered an uncle.

Stopping briefly at the bathroom, you encountered one of the options for Julie that Kenny had sent in the PDF file of people auditioning. As you stepped up to wash your hands, you noticed her lips moving along to the song they had been given.

“Are you okay?” You questioned turning to face the teenager no more than fifteen at the most. Her brown eyes colliding with yours unable to hide the nerves, “You’re auditioning for Kenny Ortega’s show, right?”

“Yeah. I’m Madison.” The girl spoke, holding out her hand to shake, “Are you auditioning for Carrie?”

You smiled at her question, “No.”

Julie went to answer before the glance at her watch, startled her barely getting a goodbye out before she was rushing out the door. You went back to drying your hands before heading to the room Kenny had messaged you about. It was a large room with people sitting at tables and four people on stage. All in a circle speaking quietly, you took the opportunity to settle beside Kenny and your three band members.

“Hey Kenny.” You murmured turning to the man, the myth, legend Kenny Ortega himself. The man beamed at you as he had not seen you in months due to touring.

“Y/N! Sweetheart.” Kenny spoke, taking in the differences, the bags under your eyes gone from the last time he had a video call, “You look stunning as usual.”

You chuckled at his compliment, feeling he was right; sleep was definitely better when not on a travelling bus. Late nights now found at the recording studio with the band and less stress on being hounded by fans.

“So, what do you want us to do?” You questioned glancing at the quartet on the stage each keeping their attention on each other, “Who are they?”

Kenny glanced at his colleagues ready for the day to start, “This the first time they will be performing on the stage as the band. They don’t know yet. As being their age, I’d like you to show them the dynamic we’re looking for.”

You nodded along with Lachlan, Brad and Jay. Kenny’s happy smile directed you guys for a second before turning to the stage. Huddling with your bandmates, you started throwing out song choices, one the most challenging things.

“Okay. Before we have you sing Bright, I convinced my niece to join us while they are off touring.” Kenny told the actors gesturing to the band in a huddle unbothered at the lack of listening, “Okay.”

Turning as Kenny’s voice centred towards you, the people on the stage caught sight of you all; Madison’s eyes grew. She adored your music, and not recognizing you in the bathroom, burnt her. The other guys were less familiar with the band other than Owen who knew them through Madison and Savannah.

“This is my niece Y/N along with her band members Lachlan, Brad and Jay. Tarnished Poets this is candidates for the show Charlie, Jeremy, Owen and Madison.” Kenny gestured to the two separate groups who quickly switched.

With a vast amount of experience, the small stage revamped itself with the band’s personal instruments. People held to move the stage drums to replace with Brad’s drums behind the clear plastic with quick succession as the remaining members took their places.

Your dark wash jean jacket tossed to the side of the stage mere seconds before Lachlan’s fingers started the song off with shredding on his baby pink guitar. The room melted away from your mind as the four got lost in the music.

You got the nerve to come and say

That you’re not standing in my way

When we both know

Eyes closed you moved to the fast beats feeling on the top of the world as if nothing would knock you down.

The room was quiet aside from the music enthralling the occupants as this band shocked everyone but Madison and Kenny. This was precisely how Kenny envisioned Julie and the band would be like as the room burst into noise as if it was a concert. The stage was electrifying, and the actors couldn’t sit still with big smiles and bodies moving to the beat.

Well I’ve had high hopes up til now

And I was kinda hoping.

You could be my hero

At the lull, in words, the guitars and the drums wove through the room as you flipped your hair side to side concealing the expression. The music brought a feeling euphoria to you as it always had because nothing made you feel as alive.

You never stayed in one place when you weren’t cupping the microphone singing you jammed with the others. Cleaning removing the mic from the stand you move to face Brad through the clear screen with a grin. A smooth practised twirl you found yourself by the bassist Jay delving into the lyrics once more.

You can’t take it back

With all, I’ve tried

And I know that you can’t shape me

Moving back in fluid motion Lachlan and you switched places across the stage from Jay. Lachlan began his solo ending just as you circled back to your original positions. Everyone had watched Lachlan they missed your microphone being replaced in the stand.

As the song came to an end, you ended the last note bending to the side with the stand, every member leaning over to the floor. The guitar notes faded as the room burst into applause.

“This is what I want the band to be like!” Kenny called moving to the stage you hug you, “I knew I chose the right people. Did you see how they commanded the stage? They used the entirety, exploding with energy.”

Charlie’s jaw was dropped at how great the band was, they transformed the room into a concert, and you were damn good. Owen reached over and gently pushed Charlie’s jaw back up without looking; this move alone gave Kenny insight into the dynamic between the actors.

“Can you all come up here?” You asked the four actors moving aside for them as they stationed themselves you all wandered around, “Naturally you’ve all equally spaced yourselves out. That’s good because you understand you need space to rock out, but it comes with a negative.”

Lachlan stepped forth his accent, bringing the group to surprise, “But don’t stay in the box you’ve created. The stage is yours. You’re a band so interact.”

“Don’t play the music. Become the music you play, Luke doesn’t just love music. It’s in his blood and part of his soul.” You finished squeezing the arm of Charlie, eyes fractionally widening at the solid muscle. Charlie’s eyes glued to your eyes he didn’t notice as you gently pushed the white guitar into his chest.

“Show us Luke’s bond with music.” You softly spoke, backing away from the Canadian male turning on your heel to sit with Kenny again.

Your eyes couldn’t help but return to the male with the cut off shirt, and his hair pushed up out of his face. Suspenders connected to his jeans rolled above the brown boots. Your lips parted as Madison introduced the group.

“Hi, we’re Julie and the Phantoms I hope you enjoy.” The girl spoke before the group transformed in front of the group. They were no longer actors hoping for roles, but they became the characters they desired to play.

Charlie melted into the character of Luke with ease; it was beautiful and poetic. What they didn’t know was that they were, in fact, the band.

As the music died down, you relaxed into the chair as Kenny cheered with his hands high in the air with the entire room as they bowed. Kenny’s teasing grin glanced back as he approached the stairs to the huddled youth.

“I don’t know. Can we?” Kenny spoke to the audience amused with the anticipation of the stage.

“Do it!” You called out with a grin along with the rest of Tarnished Poets keeping your eyes on Charlie. His energy intrigued you incredibly.

“Yeah you are our band.” Kenny announced changing the lives of the official cast forever. The quartet exclaimed in response clutching each other close as if they had been friends for years instead of months.

Charlie’s grin fluttered your heart as you leaned back, watching the excited group knowing you would be watching the show when it came out.

The summer breeze was serene in the quiet area outside of the beautiful city of Vancouver, Canada where filming had commenced. Scheduling was perfect with the members of Tarnished Poets breaking off for the break. Lachlan returned to his family in Perth, Australia while Brad and Jay decided on a road trip in their home state.

You had accompanied Kenny to Canada for the first part of filming moving into a small house near the set. The home quickly became the hub of the cast with the close proximation to filming, you had even given Charlie the spare key. You two incredibly close.

“So, this is where you disappear to.” The teasing voice came from behind you. Glancing over your shoulder, you met the gaze of Charlie’s hazel eyes.

He moved through the meadow to the tree you found shade under with your guitar nearby. You always had a feeling the adventurous guy would find the trail to the meadow you frequented. His forest green shirt bringing out the green of his eyes that you adored. As if you were a character in a Tumblr story, you fell for him and wondered if he felt the same.

“Sometimes I need to leave the city. I spent too much time in them.” You spoke, closing the notebook of the song you were working on. It wasn’t one you planned on using for Tarnished Poets, but instead something you hesitated on showing Kenny.

“I didn’t know you could play the guitar.” Charlie softly spoke gently, stroked the neck of the well-used guitar. Passed down from your mom who loved playing at cafes in her teens and into her early 20s.

“Probably because we perform with electric more often. Plus, I like doing vocals.” You spoke shuffling to face him, “So it took you over a month to find this meadow.”

Charlie chuckled glancing at the notebook with interest. He always wanted to know more about you from the moment he saw you.

“What are you working on?” He questioned slowly grasping the notebook in his hand. Usually, you would be shy and letting someone see an unfinished song. Still, something about Charlie never made you feel nervous.

“A song about regret over hurting someone.” You softly replied, moving to bring your knees into your chest thinking about one of the final devasting moments, “I’m kinda the female counterpart of Luke. I grew up in a small town where people had reliable jobs. I always loved music. My mom taught me to play the guitar.”

“Yeah?” Charlie smiled, wondering what a kid version of you would have been like. Your eyes raised to meet his.

“Her dream was to make a living out of her music, and she got rejected. A lot. I think she lost a part of herself when she gave up for a secure, stable job as an accountant. Didn’t mean she didn’t still love to play, so she taught me how to play as a hobby.”

“But you loved it like she did.” Charlie breathed picking up where the story would be going so he gently took your hand in his; something not unusual with you two.

“I posted videos of covers on YouTube and Lachlan saw it. He had moved to America to make his dream and closely, our band came together. We did some gigs around my hometown even making the long trips to the city.” You reminisced on the times where you were an underground band with a small following. Things went sour when you hit more immense success, “We had the opportunity for our music, and at eighteen we took it.”

Slowly you leaned into the body of Charlie relaxing as his arms encompassed you in a feeling of safety and warmth. His fingers tangling in your hair as he focused on your story.

“My parents found out, and Mom just exploded. We both said cruel things, and I left that night. We played gigs constantly, so I always pushed back, making up with her. Six months into the move, she got into a car accident.” You sighed nestling further into Charlie, “I wrote that song, but I couldn’t even finish it, but with Luke’s storyline, I think it would be perfect. I’m polishing it up to present to Kenny.”

“What’s it called?” He inquired, smiling as you shifted to lean your back against his chest to cradle the guitar in your lap.

“Unsaid Emily. My mom’s name is Emily.” Your words nearly buried under the soft notes from the guitar. Your lips opened to sing, but you didn’t have to. Charlie started it.

The emotion was raw in the air as the power in his voice brought you to tears, unable to do more than strum the guitar and harmonizing at one point. It was like Unsaid Emily was made for Charlie to sing. At that moment you knew, this was the song Luke needed to do for his mom in the show; however, it could be incorporated.

Overcome with an emotion you pushed to your knees to cup his cheeks as he trailed off the last word. The guitar keeping you from pressing your chests together to kiss you poured your feelings in the kiss. A kiss he returned with gusto.

“Whoa.” Charlie breathed, keeping his forehead connected to yours smiling as your eyelashes tickled his cheeks. Calloused fingers set the guitar aside as he tugged you into his chest as his lips drew closer.

Your lips parted as a tingle overtook your whole body as he lips caressed yours soft lightly you thought you imagined it. His mouth claimed yours in what might be the most passionate one you’ve ever had. Pulling away, you became aware your hands had flipped under his shirt with knowing.

“Thank you.” You spoke softly looking up through your eyelashes at the guy the grew as important as the band.

Charlie’s cheeks painted a soft pink set off by the hypnotizing brown of his hazel gaze as if you were his whole world. His eyes scanning all your features from the small scar in your hairline thanks to a table edge at six years old.

“For what?”

“Being you.” You replied tugging fists full of the green shirt to silence her thoughts with another fervent meeting. Yours arm coming to encircle his neck as his hands copied the move on your waist. Sitting on knees time slowed in the toe-curling kiss, he pulled away once more.

“I could kiss you forever, and it still wouldn’t be long enough.” Charlie spoke, keeping his eyes closed as his fingers pinched his skin. This was what he dreamed of, being able to hold you more than a few seconds of an embrace.

“How is this going to work? My band goes on tour when you’re at the end of filming.” You questioned nestling into his arms again. The future was scary when you both were incredibly busy with the upcoming months.

“I’ll fly over for a few weeks. See you in action.” He chuckled, pushing you away to stand up, “How about we start with dinner first?”

It seemed the universe took pity on a young couple when Charlie took you home to his family to meet. His parents and siblings being the only ones aware of the relationship. Tour came and went with Charlie, using the time before promoting JATP, attended before you flew back to Canada with him.

Being with Charlie was like breathing, necessary and beautiful. You got along with his family as he did with yours. It was remarkable how interconnected you became together in the months committed to the relationship.

“Hey.” Charlie spoke, kissing your cheek in your private home you were renting in the country of Canada. When whispers of the pandemic came around, you had flown from the house you rented in LA with a friend to home.

Charlie had had the same idea to return home to his parents’ home while you settled into a house further away from other people. Charlie walked the distance to your place, and when lockdown came into effect, the decision was, he would stay with you.

“Well hello.” You cheekily responded, resting your fingers on the sleep flush of his cheeks as the glazed look faded.

Charlie straight out of sleep was by far your favourite version of him with the genuine and raw unguarded emotions he displayed. In the nine months together, you had fallen for him swifter than Swiper from Dora could take items. Completely reciprocated on his side.

“You look happy.” Charlie murmured tracing the path from your temple to the corner of your mouth. The boy with messy hair, he had started growing it out after Julie, and the Phantoms wrapped.

“I am.” You softly spoke, shifting closer to him, “I’ve never been happier than I am tucked away from the world in your arms.”

The flush of Charlie’s cheek no longer came from the nap, but from the attention, you placed on the actor. He could feel the love radiating from your heart just by the look in your eyes.

“I’m going to be incredibly cheesy and reply that I am holding my world in my arms.” He expressed leaning over to press his lips against your forehead raptured by the honour he had at loving you.

“The next few days will be hectic.” You articulated running your hands through the thick brown hair focusing solely on his eyes—the building excitement budding within the actor.

Charlie’s lips parted to reply when his phone vibrated on the side table, “One moment. It’s Owen.”

You shifted out of the camera view per the mutual decision to keep the relationship under wraps for the time being. You absolutely knew the show would be a hit and thousand, make that hundreds of thousands, of people, would crush on the character. By keeping the relationship quiet, it would increase the fanbase because some people honestly only care about looks.

“Hey Buddy!” Charlie beamed at his fellow quarantine hair buddy with over 3,000 kilometres between each other.

“Eh! Charlie!” Owen greeted just as excited at his best friend delving into a story of the recent lego build his mom had made.

“So, the show debuts in a few days. How do you feel about it? I’m excited but also nervous. First leading role.”

“I think people will relate to the show. I mean the music is amazing, and the acting wasn’t too shabby.” Owen replied just about to open his mouth when he slammed it shut. His blue eyes narrowed together, picking up on the odd background. He had to lean closer to his phone, “Either I’m suddenly eighty years old or your definitely not at home.”

“W-what?” Charlie scoffed eyes flicking to the surroundings completely forgetting he was in his girlfriend’s home instead of his parents, “I’m at home.”

“No! We’ve chatted so many times I could draw your family’s house blueprint with my eyes closed. That is a bedroom and it ain’t in the Gillespie home.”

Charlie moaned hanging his head, “C’mon buddy. I’m at home.”

“Charles Gillespie, you have sex hair.” Owen deadpanned unamused at the obvious and quite literally horrible dishonesty from the Canadian male. Charlie’s cheeks puffed as he blew air out of his mouth and taking the ‘L’ in the situation.

“One moment.” He spoke, putting his friend on mute and setting the phone down to create a black screen. The entire short conversation you had delved back into the songbook always on your person, “Babe, Owen won’t let it go.”

“Tell him.” You replied gazing over the rim of your glasses with a smirk scarcely visible to your partner. Your full attention returned to scribbling in the book while Charlie inhaled sharply; psyching himself up.

“Okay. I’m seeing someone.” Charlie admitted sending the blonde into screaming having been suspicious. Jeremy’s wife, then girlfriend, had tried setting Charlie up with countless refusals.

“Who is it?”

“Don’t get upset. I’m dating Y/N-“

“-like Y/N from Tarnished Poets? The musician from Bootcamp that completely made us look like toddlers?” Owen demanded gasping as Charlie panned the FaceTime to the girl under the blankets, “Holy shit!”

“I don’t know how I managed to get her date, but it’s the happiest I’ve been.”

“Hey Owen.” You acknowledged the blonde drummer with a shy smile and kind eyes that he had found numerous times on set. He looked up to you along with loving the suggestions and help Brad gave him on the drums.

“How long have you been together?” Wondered Owen with the cute little smile you found endearing. You felt happy that it was Owen that had pieced it together.

“Going on ten months now-“

“-and I’m only just now finding out!” Owen exploded jittery in his seat at the pairing he had wanted to get together since the unbreakable gaze multiple times on set, “God I love the world!”

“Just don’t tell anyone, okay? We want to keep this private; you wouldn’t have been told had you not figured it out.”

“More like hounded it.” Charlie muttered under his breath, slinking his arm around your shoulders as his right hand held his phone. You slapped the bare chest of the love of your life heart fluttering at the solid muscle as it always did, “We need to get together as soon as we can.”

“I’m so done. There’s nothing to do in Oklahoma man. So that photo from Tarnished Poet’s European tour was real?” Owen recalled the picture that had crossed his Instagram For You page a few months prior.

“Yeah. I flew over for two weeks having the best time watching my girl kill it on the stage, they destroyed the stage each performance.” Charlie gushed unable to hold himself from frantically telling Owen about you unfazed by your presence.

“Why am I so single!” Owen groaned flinging his head back, “Is it the whole living with my parents at twenty? Am I not established enough?”

“Nah, you’re just too boring.” Charlie quipped thankful he was out of reach of the taller boy earning a laugh from his side. Owen snickered with a quick retort to his fellow actor.

“Well I’d stay and chat, but my phone is at 10%, and I’m too lazy to find my charger.” Owen started waving as he hung up on Charlie without waiting for a reply.

Your lips twitched that the profanity that fell from your boyfriend’s lips at the abrupt end of the call. Owen was like that in the end, living in the moment to an extent. Charlie turned on his side to tug you into his side, uncaring of your task.

“You’ve slept enough.” You chortled at the clinging boyfriend you had.

“Do you think we should tell the cast? Owen will be bursting with the secret if we don’t” queried Charlie pining his gaze on the steadily flushing cheeks with a fondness, “They wouldn’t tell. I really want to brag about my hot rocker girlfriend.”

Your hand dropped the notebook to play with his hair, “We’ll just keep the relationship to close friends and our family.”

Too bad you didn’t place a bet with Charlie because two hours after the convo with Owen your phones harmonized together. Your iPhone showing Carolynn’s cute selfie while Jeremy called Charlie.

“You’re dating Charlie!” Carolynn practically screamed into the phone, completely excited, “Owen told Jeremy, and I have wife privileges.”

“Dude! How long?”

“Near ten months.”

“Damn, we missed so many chances for double dates, but hey now I know who you kept sneaking into the apartment. Not like the smug smirk, the next day and her stiff walking didn’t speak for itself.”

“Jer!” Charlie called out mortified yet also proud that you couldn’t walk the night after. Your reaction was to Jer’s blunt statement was to bury your face in Charlie’s neck, concealing the deep blush.

The two couples conversed a couple more hours before ending in the evening for food. The same routine would continue for the next few days with alternating between the cast. The day Julie and the Phantoms dropped on Netflix, you binged it. The acting was insane and the storyline paired with the songs? Beautiful.

The issue came when Episode 8 came with the tsunami of emotions as Luke shattered himself singing Unsaid Emily.

“Oh my god.” You sniffled shakily cupping your damp cheeks in your hands, “It hurts. He’s having this cathartic release while agonizing himself. His parents can hear him singing the song.”

Charlie tugged you into his side equally moved from the cinematic beauty Kenny’s team had done. Unsaid Emily was the most emotional piece of music you had ever written in your career; Kenny had fallen in love with it. His genius mind recreating the scene of Luke singing and changing his mother’s name to Emily.

“Sh.” Charlie soothed in your ear, rubbing circles on the small of your back crying along with you, “It’s just a show.”

“Where in the hell did you pull off that level of regretful sadness? Who hurt you.” You replied, breathing shakily as the scene. Your eyes still tearing up as Emily finally got a little peace back after losing her son twenty-five years in the past.

“I took inspiration from your story, and I watched a video with a bunch of people describing the last moment with their loved ones. Add some sad music and missing my family…well this happened.” Charlie explained gently pushing your hands away to wipe your damp cheeks in a soft smile, “You created the song. It’s your work that moved so many people.”

“I provided words and a melody. You provided emotion and bridge between Luke and the audience.” You retorted leaning closer to the Canadian boy so very much in love with him.

Charlie pressed another kiss to your forehead as you tried to pull yourself together but watching Luke and Julie try to touch? That shattered you even more. Luke deserved a hug, and he can’t even get one from his crush? Extremely tragic.

“Maybe we should write a song together.” Charlie suggested quirking up one eyebrow as his green eyes spoke volumes on his feelings no words could ever match. His long fingers playing your digits.

“I have a better idea.” You grinned, “I know season two hasn’t been confirmed but what if Jer, Owen, you and Mads write songs for the band? Give an authentic aspect to your characters and band. Do it together, in pairs and alone.” You breathed straddling him to ensure you had his full attention at the suggestion that lit a light in his eyes.

“You must be on to something.” Charlie acknowledged removing his phone from his pocket to use the group chat. In a few minutes, he had exciting suggestions for the song ideas, “I love you.”

“Love you too.” You replied, sitting back as he continued planning both via the group chat and FaceTime with the others.

Kenny was a genius both on screen and at matchmaking. As evidenced with Charlie and Kenny’s niece.

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