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findusinaweek · 1 year

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Everyone should have a therapist who is a nerd.

My therapist has told me "If you can't love yourself in this state right now try to find a fanfic with a character you love who is experiencing a similar state". She has made me read fanfics as homework multiple times. Once because I was spending hours daily beating myself up for being a failure she told me to find a fanfic where a character messes up and isn't mean or down in themselves but just let's it go and tries to do better. I have not quite found one of those yet (Steve Harrington from Stranger Things is the closest but only if he also has therapy and recognizes/accepts he is kind of an idiot).

I also wrote myself a little fanfic with Amanda from Dream Daddy because I needed comfort and my dad sucks but Dadsona is a wonderful father so that kind of fulfilled a need.

I'm working on the whole healing and not hating your inner child and really struggling with it. I know they/he/she (I think of different ages of myself as different genders and I don't want to explain that here) exists in me and I know I mentally cut them off from me. And I've learned that if I can't be nice to myself I can be nice to other characters. Right now I'm stuck on Deimos (AC Odyssey). Deimos also experiences being in a cult as a child and trauma and neglect and a shattered self image. Deimos becomes a monster of a person, one that I think many people in such horrible circumstances could allow themselves to be. So I'm drafting out a minicomic (who knows if I'll make it but its the planning that counts ) where Deimos listens to their inner child. If you can't trust yourself now maybe you can trust the child from when all those hard bits became your truth.

Was in the middle of a crisis where I didn't feel...right. Safe? I can't really explain the details. I know what I have to do to get myself into a better situation but I've been unwillingness to do it. It doesn't feel acceptable or possible. My therapist had the gall to tell me that it's what Brasidas (AC Odyssey/RL historical figure) would want. Uhm excuse me? You don't know what famed deceased Ancient Man and love of my life would want for me? But would the Brasidas I've built in my mind from Assassins' Creed Odyssey and history books and fanfics and so on and so forth want me to live in a constant state of distraught? No. I think it's Plutarch who mentions a story where he gets bit by a mouse and says "there is nothing so little but it may preserve itself" and uh that sustains me sometimes. I think he would expect me to do everything in my power to make my life a safe and free experience.

Also I've talked at length about video games with my therapist and how although they are not always the best coping mechanism they can help fulfill a need. I really like survival games like The Long Dark, where there is nothing supernatural, just the cold and nature to fight against. It allows me to narrow down my brain to the thought of water, food, comfort, safety and sometimes that's helpful in a bout of anxiety. It helps me remember that bigger things will pass. I just need to keep myself fed and watered and safe from the cold. The developers also say not to use it as a survival manual but I have cold urticaria and also I'm forgetful so in the winter sometimes I ask myself if my outfit would keep Mackenzie warm enough and that's how I decide how safe I will be. Self care for Mackenzie is self care for me.

Also Just being told by another adult that it's ok to just allow yourself to enjoy things? Even if they seem silly or childish? It's nice.

She understood what I was talking about when I described how the portrayal of mental health in The Magicians helped me (especially Quentin) and validated my feelings.

It's lovely to not have to censor or change your daily way of speaking when in therapy. If the person understands your slang/what you are talking about when you describe your day to day life it's just very nice.

#my therapist betraying me bringing up brasidas #using the brainworms for good #self care #fandoms as self care #taking care of mackenzie as a form of self care #personal rant #my therapist had seen me twice and asked if anyone had ever diagnosed me as autistic #I felt seen but also was not ready for that #therapy #nerd stuff #fandom rants #creativity and mental health

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musecaravan-info · 7 months

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Robert Small

"Maybe I’m just built like this. Or maybe I do it to myself. Maybe it’s my own choice I’m as unhappy as I am." ~ Robert Small ~

Basic Information

FACE/BODY CLAIM: (If Needed) Jay Tavare

NAME: Robert Small

AGE: I typically place Robert at about 45/46

EYES: Dark brown

HAIR: Both hair and beard are dark brown with some peppered gray

HEIGHT: 6'2

PRIMARY OUTFIT: In the game Robert's primary outfit is a long-sleeved, red v-neck shirt; a pair of dark-washed, torn-up jeans, a leather jacket, and a pair of sunglasses hanging from his shirt collar that he never seems to wear. I don't think his shoes are ever mentioned but I like to headcanon a pair of worn, black cowboy boots.

Personality

Robert is a man who's hard to read. He's sarcastic and doesn't really seem to care what others think of him. He likes pulling people's chains - telling stories that are just weird enough that you're always left wondering how much of what he said is true. He's got strong opinions about a variety of things... and is actually a little bit of a 'nerd' when it comes to his hobbies, like movies and music.

Powers & Weaknesses

Despite his gruff exterior Robert tends to have a magnetism that attracts people to him. He gives off this aura of 'the coolest guy' in the room.' He's a good musician, and a fair whittler. He's also a more-than-decent cook - a skill he doesn't bother showing off all that often. In addition, he's an excellent liar and a fair fighter (though he'd rather bluff his way out of a fight than actually do any fighting.)

As for weaknesses... his daughter, Val, is probably his greatest weakness. But in general, if he cares about someone enough, they're a weakness, too. In Robert's world caring = weakness. He's been hurt one too many times, and it's hard for him to let those barriers drop for anyone anymore.

Romance

Robert is a flirt and he's not all that subtle about it. If he likes what he sees, he will absolutely proposition sex immediately after meeting someone. However, in his eyes sex ≠ romance or a relationship. In fact, if he sleeps with you, the chances of getting anything real out of him are slim to none. Getting Robert to the point where he's even willing to admit/acknowledge he might have actual feelings for your muse WILL. TAKE. TIME. He's got more than his fair share of emotional hang-ups and will need time and patience to get past those issues.

Where to Find Him

I actually have an entire post already done up about this. Go HERE to get an idea of all the different places your muse might happen across him.

Verses

Just because a verse isn't listed here doesn't mean I'm not interested in writing it. I adore all kinds of AUs, and welcome the chance to get creative with my muses.

In-Game Verse:

Okay, so I’m a little picky about this one, especially for Dadsonas because I’d really prefer not to ‘replay’ Robert’s canon dates in our RP. However, if your muse is an OC (who’s not a Dadsona) or you’re a Canon, I’m down for having our RP take place in this verse, especially if you hit me up with any ideas you have for it. Dadsonas - if you REALLY want something here, it’s okay to ask. But please have an idea of what you’d like to do. Thanks! :)

After-Game Verse

I’m 100% down for doing things that happen after Amanda’s party. This goes for anyone - Canon or OC or Dadsona. I’m also okay with giving Dadsonas who slept with Robert on the first night (or on his other dates) a chance to ‘redeem’ themselves in his eyes. And for those who didn’t and got two or three lovely dates, I’m down for date number 4. Y’know…so he can get some help dealing with his issues (and live happily ever after.) ^_^.

Before-Game Verse

This verse obviously won’t work for Dadsonas, but if an OC or a Canon wants to plot things from before the game took place, and after Robert and marilyn moved to Maple Bay, then I’m down, let’s do it. :)

Cult Verse

I have a mighty need for Robert to be the one who saves the Dadsona instead of Mary… >.> A VERY mighty need. So - for any OCs and Dadsona’s out there - hit me up. I’m also a fan of Robert (somehow) rescuing Joseph from whatever might have hold of him, so for any Joseph’s who’d like to RP that with me, just say the word. If you’ve got other ideas for Cult-verse with other characters, just ask. I’m game for plotting. :)

Hunter Verse

In this verse Robert IS a hunter from the CW show, Supernatural. He’s got (potentially canon) ties to John Winchester, and he keeps Maple Bay and the surrounding area safe from the things that go bump in the night.

Backstory Verse

This would be for blogs interested in doing something from Robert’s past. It could be someone like a band groupie, or someone he traveled/hitchhiked with, or met while working at the recording studio, etc. There’s a lot of opportunity here for a variety of ideas, so if it interests you, let me know. :)

Current/Ongoing Threads

If your thread with Robert isn't listed here it's probably because it's been long enough since your last reply that I thought you'd dropped it. Message me to let me know you're still interested, and I'll happily add you to the list (with no pressure for a reply.) ♡

Ash/Eric/Mike/et al:

Down with the Ship (After Game Verse)

No Mercy for Dead Men (Fantasy Pirate Verse)

Wheeling and Dealing (Prohibition Verse)

Wynter:

Liquid Dream (Before Game Verse)

You're My Only Hope (Hunter Verse)

Completed Threads

I don't have many of these on any of my blogs, but RPs I've actually completed deserve to be acknowledged, I think. ;)

Wynter:

The Devil You Know (Hunter Verse)

Things You See in a Graveyard (Before Game Verse)

Stuff That's Good to Know Before Starting a Thread

I'm... actually having trouble thinking of anything for Robert. I think most of what's important has been covered elsewhere.

If there's something you think should be here... or if you just have questions, let me know. ^_^

Links

Please keep in mind, this blog is an ongoing work in progress. Not all of these links may lead somewhere, but they're here because they link to potential tags for this muse.

All Things Robert

Headcanons

Drabbles

All Threads

Ask Replies

Meme Replies

Aesthetics

Face

Special Links

Original Blog

Game Graphics

Robert's Relationships

Return To Full Muse List

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ramdomddadds · 6 years

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Dream daddy ask: dino-nerd dadsona

He was a nerd wasn’t he?

So, um... holly motherfucking cow, I just remembered how much I love acurate, updated dinosaur stuff, and how it could fit the dream daddy fandom?

so, yeah.

I know I’m such a nerd and I’m so late to the fandom but I had fun writing this and here it is

-ROBERT

He notices how fast you get to withling, and how you always make some animal.

He also notices how interested you are in anything supernatural, But always fiting the science factor in there. Like how it could be that jakelopes exist, and they could crosbreed with hares but not bunnyes becouse they are too diferent or how the yeti could be a distant relative of the orangutan...

Or how you are pasionated about movie making too, but prefer realistic stuff, but he says nothing, because he likes silence.

Then, one day, he comes over for movie and pizza, and he finds it: notebooks.

Notebooks all over the house.

There are three different notebooks on the stack of the tea table. One, opened, on the big table at the dinner room. Another one somewere on the kitchen, and many, intersected with books, on the shelves across the house.

With the excuse that it was open and in the same room, he takes the one in the big table, and flips over it.

Its filled with drawings, sketches, notes and doodles of people, planst and animals.

There’s him, and betsy, so thats… there. Theres a lot of Amanda… and many, many animals.

It calls his atention that many of the drawings fit conversations they had.

MC hadn’t hear speak of the dover ghost before he met Robert, but here they were: pages and pages of sketches and different designs of how the dover ghost may look like.

Some of them were more animal-like, others where very human, and other were made of shadow, the mark of the pencil, smugled with the author’s fingers to make it look like smoke. A chill climbed up Robert’s spine when he came across a particular drawing that did look just the way he remembered it, dragging something behind.

There were steps behind him.

“…Robert?”

Ups. MC was back in the room, and he had his nose deep within the sketchbook. Robert concentrated in another drawing, one that was very common, and odd.

Robert lifted his gaze.

“…dinosausr, with feathers?”

“Oh fuck, Robert! Uh…”

Robert held his gaze, smirking

“Yes. Yes, ok? Dinosaurs with feathers. I can explain it”

Robert closed the notebook, but held it as he crosed his legs, leaning in the table

“Im listening”

And he kept listening as MC went on and on, telling him how come dinosaurs actually had feathers, and the remains of them that could still be found in birds, and so many little fascinating facts, with such passion, similar to when Robert himself told intrinsek made up stories.

He smiled. This could be so much fun

-DAMIEN

He was delighted, with MC’s appreciation of his abode. He even said he felt sorry for the dead butterflyes, but still appreciated the beauty of his colection, and the work that went into it.

As soon as they were sitting at the couch, he had asked for the skulls placed across the room.

They walked over to them and talked about fosils. MC tried to guess the species and origin of the bones, and if he did not get the exact thing, he could deduce a lot from looking at them.He took a bit longer to mention the feathers issue. It was nice to have interests in common with Damien and he didn’t want to ruin it with the stupid argument of the feathers.

Of course the day came. They went to the movies, and Damien turned out to be very scared! MC held his hand and rambled on and on of how unrealistic they were, and why some choices were made, and later on the conversation developed into a very popular, clasic movie:

Jurassic park.

“Most raptor species were smaller but there was one or two species the size of the ones in the movie, in wich they were inspired… but they had feathers, all of them, including the T-rex”

“Wait, what?”

“Ups. Uh… see…”

And it was down hill from there.

-CRAIG

When MC got to the BQ and saw Craig waving from across the yard, he recogniced an SOS call. His buddy needed him.

“Dude, I have no idea what is going on”

MC listened quietly for a moment and then leaned onto Craig and wispered to him

“Moustachasaurus is asking a simple question. Rastasaurodon misinterprets it and makes stuff way more complicated thatn it is. Both monsters engage in an eternal loop of bloodshed, a battle of giants. Is the dress blue or yellow? Are best cats or dogs? Pineapple or pineappleless?”

Craig gigles and covers his mouth, wile looking at the two men arguing in front of him.

Hugo tells Mat why he thinks you can not compare two pictures from different moments in history, but when Mat repeats the question, down they go again.

“Moustachasaurus displays his extense knolege of taking pics throu the ages and Rastasaurodon tries to scape, but Moustachasaurus attacks from behind and they engage in tragic battle again. It must be mating season or something”

Craig breaks into laughter, distracting the two men with glasses, and pretends he was having an innocent conversation with MC

“Do you remember how into dinosaurs we were?”

Oh no

He’s got a funny, smug look. Its a trap! ABORT! ABORT!

“eh… were?”

“Bro”

“Broooo what do you think the tyranosaurus rex did with those tiny arms?”

“Don’t do it bro. I found out. You won’t like it”

“I need to know bro”

“noo”

“Tell me, MC Tell me…”

Craig held him by the shirt and roughly wispered in his ear

“What were those tiny claws for?”

“Mhhh huu aaaah FEATHERS”

Craig stepped back, shock written all over his face

“Bro… not you too”

“Im sorry Craig. It is true”

“No… its impossible. It can not be!”

“The t-rex had feathers. He probabbly had fluffy and colofull arms for display, when fighting for terrytory… and mating”

“Nooooo!”

“I would never lie to you, bro. It is true”

“…the velociraptor too?”

“…specially the velociraptor”

-JOSEPH

MC tried not to talk about it in front of Joseph. He just didn’t know how he would take it, being religious and all. Until…

Joseph has a yatch. OMG. He has a yacht.

Before they got off the shore, MC was already creeping him out.

“I just love the sea. It holds so many misteries… do you have interest in all of the marine life? Why would you own a boat if not?”

“hehe, I just enjoy the fantasy of sailing aways into the sunset… just the sea and I”

“But its not just the sea and you. There’s the giant squid. You knew that? its real. They are out there”

“Shh, don’t be afraid. I will protect you”

“No, Im not afraid, Im fascinated! There’s so much we don’t know about the sea, I mean, it is the origin of all life…!”

And then, an akward silence

…he was nervous, ok?

“uh… I mean, after God put it there, of course”

“…right”

“…sorry. There’s not a door we can close and open again this time”

Joseph laughts, maybe to make it a bit less akward

“Actually, speaking of marine life, we may see whales”

“Whales!”

“And dolphins”

“Oh my god, really? Do you see them ofthen?”

“Yeah. You are interested on them? you know they can be cruel right? They drown theyr babys for fun…”

“Oh no, they don’t. Dolphins are some of the most inteligent and social creatures out there. If they ever do that is as a punishent to a misbehabing child, or to teach them to survive when they have trouble. Of course they can go mad or try murder too but it is…”

Joseph was staring at him in disbelief

“…rare. …uh. …yeah”

“Wow”

“hmh. Did you know dinosaurs had feathers? Why do you think they died?”

“…what?”

-MAT

Mat is such a dork. And he babbles. Its adorable! I guess I feel less self-concious near someone who’s also self-concious.

…ok.

He starts talking about music. I don’t know much about music, but it is nice and sweet and Mat knows lots of stuff and it brings memories from a while back, so it is easy to listen and just roll with it.

Speaking of wich.

Retro music reminds me of retro stuff.

And that reminds me of Dinosaurs, and how awful and fake they looked back then.

“What you talking about, man, dinosaurs are cool. …I think”

“Yeah, but, compare the ones in black and white movies with Jurassic park”

“Oh, yeah. Thats the stuff”

“Ok, now let me tell you: jurassic park is now outdated too. Dinosaurs did not look like that”

“what!?”

Mat lays down and listens in awe to me babling abut the found proof that dinosaurs had feathers, and not only that, but also also spikes and colorfull crests and shiny scales, and the misterious noises they may had made. Even the spinoaurus from the third movie, turns out it didn’t walk on two feet. I start realising Im babling a bit too much, but he just looks at me with his sweet, big brown eyes and smiles

“maaaan. I feel so old”

“well, look at the bright side. Not as old as those fossiles”

-HUGO

Going to the acuarium with Hugo was an exciting adventure. And I got to awe a bunch of kids with my extense trivia about penguins, while he got some kid out of the penguin enclosure. How did she get in there? oh well.

Trivia nights were also fun. Hugo and I make a good team and there’s lots of cheese!

It was the dawn of a new era. It really started the time the quizz master got some wrestling trivia wrong, and Hugo went head over hills for it.

I went for all the natural history and nature ones.

Thats what I told him when he showed he his colection.

“Don’t be ashamed of this, man. Remember how I get when Master quizz talks about dinosaurs?”

“Oh. …OH. Oh, boy”

“Oh yeah. I too, have a dark seecret”

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. …but, what could it be? You are just very educated about nature. It is interesting, many people enjoy the nature channel”

I was giving him a mischevous look

“It goes deeper than that”

Hugo looks at me in the eyes and then carasses his chin before daring to ask

“…how deep is that?”

I walk closer to him, wrestling belt over my shoulder

“Remember you asked”

He doesn’t moves, but gulps when I wisper on his ear

“Dinosaurs had feathers”

“… what?”

“And shiny scales, and colorfull crests, and they made all shorts of music”

“Whait, what, for real?”

“And not all of them went extinct. Not only crocodiles and turtles survived. It has been proved: the birds that we have today descend from dinosaurs like raptors and relatives of the t-rex. Thats why they call it the extintion of the non-aviar dinosaurs now”

“…for real? I… didn’t know that”

“and there was a period, the triasic, when nature was on drugs, and it produced all kinds of crazy stuff!!”

“Say waaaat?” Said his kid, Ernest, standing in the door. How much did he listen?

-BRIAN

“oh, is that a dinosaur book?” said MC, and Amanda turned in horror.

“Oh no”

“yes, it is” Said Daisy, with a wide smile “I wish we were studing theese in class, but they don’t talk much about fosiles, just rocks…”

Brian laughted proudly. “Daisy is not happy with all they teach in class. She is always looking for books with extra stuff…”

Only then he noticed Amanda frantically denying with her head, and making ‘cut it’ gestures. He then looked back at MC. It was too late.

He was sitting next to Daisy, pointing at pictures in the dinosaur book.

“Ok, you know this one?”

“Yeah, that’s a brachiosaurus”

“The long-neck one” added Brian “That one’s easy”

“yeah, but it did not look like that. Book is a bit outdated. New data travels faster online. See, look at the skull. Now, where are the holes of the nose?”

Daisy thoug for a moment.

“… they are… above its eyes? On the top of the forehead?”

“Exactly. Now, don’t you think that’s a bit weird? Having such a wide, weird nose, and a big mouth way apart? Something’s missing”

“Yeah…?”

“Ok, now look at the skull of an elephant”

MC took out his phone and showed her pictures

“… it doesn’t have a nose! And the cavities are huge and… oh my god!”

“Exactly. The trumpet is big and important, but it has no bones. If someone found the fosil of an elephant, but never saw one, they would draw him without a trumpet”

“Like it happened to the brachiosaurus. It had a trumpet! Dad!”

Brian nearly flinched. He was barely catching up

“The brachiosaurus had a trumpet, dad! Can you believe it?”

Brian looked at Amanda. She was scrolling throu her phone like nothing was going on.

“actually, not necesary a trumpet, see…”

Daisy turned her attention fully back to MC

“They are both big hervibores, but the brachiosaurus had a very long neck. It didn’t need a long trumpet. …kind of like a giraff. Have you seen what they do?”

Daisy denied. MC was already playing a video of a giraff using its lips, and loong, sticky toung to catch things and eat them.

“it probably didn’t have a trumpet. Nor a long tounge, but there was definetly something important on its nose, wich it probably used for eating and for singing, kinda like cows do, and maybe it was colorful, or diferent between males and females…”

“wooow! It is a big feature, why they don’t use it in movies?”

“see, it is kind of risky, to design such an extrange animal, so they play it easy and just cover the skull with skin. And that’s not all”

“there is more!?”

“this animals had spikes all over their tails, wich have been found incrusted in the skull of predators like the T-rex”

“Wooah!”

“Don’t feel left out” Amanda said to Brian, seeing that the poor guy needed some company “he can’t help it, loves the stuff. Just make sure you can handle it before letting him anywere near the museum”

“uh… ok”

“And whatever you do, never ask about dinosaurs with feathers” she wispered this “You will never hear the end of it”

#dream Daddy #DDADDS #ask #dinosaurs #nerd #dinosaurs had feathers #dinosaur facts #nerd dadsona

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depressivegoblin · 7 years

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In this house we love and respect Hugo Vega

#gotta make my own wrestledad positivity #dream daddy #ddadds #hugo vega #dadsona #joseph christiansen #damien bloodmarch #robert small #game grumps #love this nerd dad

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abeautifulblog · 3 years

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Welcome to Dream Daddies!

A primer for people who want to read A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood but for whatever reason are denying themselves the pleasure of playing this game -- even though it is one of the most well-written, most hilarious, most heartfelt pieces of media I have ever encountered.

You, the player-character—the Dadsona, if you will—are a single Dad who has just moved to scenic Maple Bay, Massachusetts. In Beautiful Day, the Dadsona is Gene:

(He's thirty-eight. He just moisturizes. Take note of that cat shirt, because it will return to haunt you.)

You and your eighteen-year-old daughter Amanda have just moved into a cul-de-sac that is chock full of other Hot Dads—which is all well and good, though everyone's takeaway from the game is YEAH THE HOT DADS ARE ALRIGHT, BUT MY BABY IS GOING OFF TO COLLEGE NEXT YEAR!! 😭😭😭

(Seriously, you will fall in love with Amanda and want one of your own, she is darling.)

But Gene isn't the protagonist of Beautiful Day, he's the love interest. The protagonist is Robert, one of the dateable dads:

Robert is...

Well.

He’s weird and intense and unpredictable. He's ten tons of issues in a five-pound bag, and I love him. Trashfire of my heart. ❤

(He’s not kidding with that, btw.)

I went into the game knowing who my Dream Daddy was going to be (what can I say? I can pick my type out of a lineup >_>) but then I actually played it and Robert blew all my expectations out of the water. Seriously, my just-the-facts-ma’am summary does not do this game justice, the writing is so so good.

Like the Dadsona, Robert is also a widower with an adult daughter, except that he—for a myriad of reasons—didn't handle it nearly as well as the Dadsona did. He hasn't spoken with his daughter in four years and these days he just hangs out on the periphery of Maple Bay's social scene, getting drunk and (I'm pretty sure) hooking up on grindr, waiting for his lifestyle choices to catch up with him. He is deeply in a rut, but maybe what he needs is someone to jolt him out of it.

Other relevant characters are—

Robert's best friend, Mary:

She's a bitch, and we love her. Alpha Wine Mom. Terror of the PTA. Iron hand of the church socials. She thinks you're both fucking nerds, and she's right.

Craig Cahn -- Maple Bay's Most Eligible Bachelor, and the Dadsona's BFF-since-college. Formerly “Keg-Stand Craig,” the sweetest frat bro ever to bro, now turned fitness god:

He is recently divorced, but has stayed on on good terms with his ex-wife Ashley Smashley, whom the Dadsona also knows from college. He has three girls, a set of twelve-year-old twins plus River (aka, The Baby), who spends most of her time in a baby sling strapped to Craig’s chest.

Craig is also a romance option, and Gene doesn't go there, but if you would like a story about romancing him, may I recommend my good friend Sam's fic?

Mary's husband. Joseph. >:|

I have written a lot of meta about this motherfucker.

Joseph is also a romance option.

He's a youth minister.

He has a sex yacht where he will take you to seal the deal, out on the open ocean, where no one can hear you scream.

(You may have heard something about him being a satanic cult leader, and I will tell you: he is not. That was a weird alternate ending that cannot be reached in-game, it was only found via datamining. No one is exactly sure what it was supposed to be—a Halloween special, or something to fuck with the dataminers, or what—but the devs have confirmed that it is not canon. Joseph's evil is far more mundane than that.)

He also has history with Robert, which the fic alludes to early-on. Don’t worry, you’re not missing any context -- all will be revealed in time.

Robert's daughter, Val:

ie, probably the hottest person in the whole damn game. She's a fashion editor in New York City, and is roughly 1000% higher-functioning than her father. She has a canonical girlfriend, who I named Naomi in Beautiful Day and headcanoned as NYC Jewish. Amanda visibly has a sexual awakening when she meets Val.

Betsy -- aka Robert’s dog, aka the world’s dumbest Boston terrier:

Everyone else, insofar as they are relevant to this fic:

Damien is the poster child for How To Be Goth Over Forty; he volunteers at the animal shelter with Mary and has an equally gothy son (Lucien) who is currently running every side hustle in Maple Bay. (Damien is also the trans dad, for folks who are interested, though that doesn’t come up in this fic.)

Mat owns a cute, music-themed cafe called The Coffee Spoon, and has a daughter (Carmencita) who is a dead ringer for a younger version of Amanda.

Hugo is Amanda’s English teacher; he’s recently divorced, and his 13-year-old son Ernest is an unholy terror who is determined to make himself everyone else’s problem too.

Brian is a big jovial dude who somehow brings out the Dadsona’s competitive streak like none other. In the game, Amanda immediately bonds with his daughter Daisy and they conspire to Parent Trap the two of you together -- though in my fic, Amanda sets her sights on Mat and Carmencita instead.

The beginning of Beautiful Day speeds through game-time pretty quickly, because originally I had assumed that anyone reading it would have played the game, and I didn't want to tediously retread ground they'd already seen. So most of the 'dates' from the game happen offscreen in the fic, but if you find yourself wanting more context...

(From here on out are spoilers for Robert’s route.)

DATE ZERO: MEET ROBERT

The first time you meet him is at a dive bar called Jim and Kim's, Robert's regular haunt, where you watch The Game and dazzle him with your suave flirting skills:

Robert's flat-affect makes it hard to tell whether he's receptive to the flirting or whether he's about to stab you. He leaves for a bit, with the implication that he's going to go snort coke in the bathroom. (Though let's be real—Robert talks a big game, but he's probably just checking on his tamagotchi.) While he's gone, Neil-the-bartender tells you that this is uncharacteristically talkative for Robert. So... maybe he's interested after all?

Robert comes back and the two of you walk home together from the bar, because it turns out you live on the same cul-de-sac. Then, apropos of nothing, Robert invites the Dadsona upstairs to fuck.

(Pro-tip: HOE DON'T DO IT.)

In the fic, Gene does not take him up on it; he awkwardly makes his excuses, and A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood kicks off the following morning.

DATE ONE: BOOZE AND PETTY CRIME (AND A FISTFIGHT WITH AN EIGHTH-GRADER)

The first “date” with Robert (“date” in irony quotes because nothing Robert ever does qualifies as a “date” in conventional terms) happens when he invites you out for a drink at Jim and Kim’s, which turns out to be slightly uncomfortable because he brought Mary along to third-wheel. She roasts you while Robert doesn't defend you (😠😠), but eventually you and Robert wander off and the rest of the date involves throwing rocks at cars and accidentally breaking someone's windshield, violating open-container laws, pineapple pizza, sneaking in through the back door of a movie theatre, drunkenly heckling a bad rom-com, and getting attacked by a middle schooler. (Hello, Ernest!)

It's rather cute by the end, but it, ah. Probably could have gone better.

But that's not really on you—that's just Robert, just roll with it.

DATE TWO: CRYPTID HUNTING

The second “date” happens after Robert has ghosted you for the past two weeks, then randomly blows up your phone in the middle of the night, asking if you want to go for a drive. Asking if you want to go for a drive RIGHT NOW.

Robert is subtly different on this date. As he drives you out to wherever-you're-going (and he declines to tell you where he's taking you), he's moody and quiet. The Dadsona privately wonders if Robert's taking him out into the woods to be murdered.

Eventually he drives you to his favorite scenic overlook:

Then he pulls a knife on you—

—and proceeds to teach you how to whittle, sort of. He gives you a knife and throws you in at the deep end, anyway. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The Dadsona, unsurprising, isn't great at it, and you cut your hand open. Robert very sexily does first-aid, and tells a Patented Robert Bullshit™ story about this one time a local cryptid called the Dover Ghost ate his dog.

(Spoiler, she's fine.)

Then you hear something ominous lurching about in the woods and the two of you get spooked and bolt back to Robert's truck. Illegal dumpers, or the Dover Ghost? The world may never know.

Afterward, as he's driving you home, he continues to be in a weird mood, talking obliquely about all the regrets in his life, and how he envies your relationship with Amanda because it seems 'perfect.'

(Pro-tip: whenever Robert starts to be emotionally-honest with you, respond in kind.)

He drops you off at home; you run into Amanda, who happens to be awake and getting a drink of water when you make your midnight walk of shame.

DATE THREE: THE GOOFY GHOST TOUR

By now, you're starting to get a handle on Robert. You kick off the evening at Jim and Kim's again, where he appears to have taken a shower, just for you—

—and y’all are overall vibing better. Mary is there too, but she likes you now, so you're in on the joke rather than being the butt of it.

The three of you wind up attaching yourselves to a walking ghost tour, where Robert (with the Dadsona backing his play) steals the show with his bullshit stories, and the two of you score some 'cool' free t-shirts. Mary gets bored with you nerds and wanders off, but not before pulling the Dadsona aside briefly to say that she's known Robert long enough to know when something's wrong, and asks you to keep an eye on him.

After the ghost tour, Robert invites you back to his place for a drink, which turns into making out on his couch—

--but it's pretty clear that despite trying to distract himself with sex (as is his M.O.), Robert is not in a good place. The Dadsona gently puts on the brakes, and asks Robert to talk about what's really bothering him.

Congratulations, you have now unlocked Robert's tragic backstory! (Part of it, anyway.)

It turns out that his estranged daughter, Val, has contacted him again for the first time in four years and invited him to get lunch with her—but for all that Robert desperately wants to reconcile, he's convinced that she's better off without him. He tells you that he was “a bad husband and a worse father,” sketches a picture of a marriage that was decades of disappointment and substance abuse, and says that he thinks every day about how his wife must have died hating him. What's the point of even trying? He's just going to fuck it up again like he always does.

At this point, the Dadsona can be gentle but level with him—“Nothing's going to change until you do”—and gives Robert the encouragement he needs to go see Val, even though he's terrified by the prospect. Robert winds up crying on the Dadsona's shoulder, and eventually they fall asleep on the couch together.

EPILOGUE: AMANDA'S GRADUATION PARTY

The Dadsona has thrown a surprise party for Amanda's graduation, and everyone in the neighborhood is invited. Robert has brought Val; when she talks with you, she acknowledges that the two of them have a long way to go, but she wants to repair the relationship with her father. She thanks you for what you're doing for him, and acknowledges that he’s happier now than she’s seen him in a very long time.

After playing host to your guests and sharing an emotional moment with Amanda, you slip off to go cozy up with Robert underneath the cherry tree. He admits that he likes you a lot, but he doesn't feel ready for a relationship just yet—he's aware that he has a lot to work on before he can commit to being a good partner. The Dadsona is willing to give Robert all the time he needs to figure himself out, and you cuddle with Robert beneath the cherry tree while he strokes your hair.

THE END

...

...except I wasn't entirely satisfied with that ending, because so many of Robert’s issues were still unresolved. So I, uh, wrote 136k words of fic.

I present to you: A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood. 😊

#dream Daddy #A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood

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