#this had text as well in the sketch but then i preferred it without

[starbiology]

the girls having a wraith killing competition

Close up!

#neopets #illusen #jhudora #illudora #neotag #neoart #this had text as well in the sketch but then i preferred it without #but it said '30 to 20 better catch up salad mix' 'im just getting started!' #jhudora calling illusen salad mix is still so funny to me its not even a good insult but i love it #my art

[weebsinstash]

I know the show isn't out yet but Stayed Gone is stuck in my head and I'm chugging my yandere Vox juice so hard right now. I think he has the capacity to be absolutely insufferable

---for starters THE SPYING POTENTIAL WITH THIS MAN. You're telling me he can directly plug himself in to the city power grid and see through all televisions, potentially even phones and computers too? Could he put himself on your phone and start going through your texts? Could he even just put himself on your phone real quick while you're sleeping to check in on you? You couldn't even have privacy in your own home because of whatever screens are around he could potentially shoot himself to or watch you through. Imagine just being in your apartment completely alone and he's suddenly on your tv. Like what if you had just been sitting there topless or with your dick out or something or 👀 I mean. He could see so much, really...

---God honestly like. You know I keep mentioning the Instagram without ever attaching pics or anything because I'm on mobile and I'd have to use the hazbin Instagram archive blogs here on tumblr to go find them back like, you know Val would openly post the meanest shit, would literally post Vox's face being busted up because he woke Val up from a nap or i think it was he literally just brought him the wrong soda (which to be fair was taken from Velvet and was half empty), and then you go over to Vox's account and his pic was taping his pieces back on while being really frustrated and kinda lowkey looking like he would cry

Like Val's out here "women are stupid also men are stupid too" and talking about how he adopted a dog and killed it within like 48 hours and here's Vox celebrating his pet's birthday with cake and a party like. Why are these men together. Why. Why. Don't get me wrong I love to be the involuntary third in a toxic codependency but--

look all I'm saying is... do any of you get really really upset when you see someone being mistreated, especially more so a friend of yours?

READER JUST LOSING THEIR SHIT GETTING FERAL ANGRY SHOUTING AND SCREAMING AT VAL BECAUSE HE PULLS SOME SHIT and like that's IT for you because 1. Valentino might like actually backhand you one as well, do you think he wears rings so it hurts, 2. Vox sees you defending him and like, it's based on your own preferences really but if he wasn't already gaga this CEMENTS it and 3. especially if he watches you have to take a blow for trying to stick up for him. Like what if you cry. I have a low pain threshold, I'd be sniveling and crying at the least. Valentino storms off and Vox is helping peel you off the floor cause you curled up into a ball or some shit and he's sitting there thinking "wow they suck at this but they still did it for me 🥺"

---during his song with Alastor, it's a little confusing because they show an actual camera crew when he's turning the TVs on, but i think it's pretty clear that he can control whatever the screens show visually, thus his little zany sketches and being able to talk to himself and at one point, showed the visual of himself blocking the radio Alastor was projecting on right next door. I can just see him using this to kind of.... fuck with you, really! Or do whatever he wants? He's trying to suck up to you and he's surrounded by roses, or you're his co-host/guest host and he thinks your joke was funny and gives a little audience laughter as a treat

Or you know... you're running from him down the street, passing all these different screens and displays as they power on and show things like, him "jumping in front of you" while demanding you stop or, trying to show some kind of blackmail publicly, or just, begging you to just ACCEPT HIM and showing you all the fun things he could do with you, "cmon, I said I was sorry, stop freaking the fuck out! We can- we can do that thing you've always wanted to do, what about that?!" as he tries to project you two doing something fun, but most importantly, doing it TOGETHER. You're running from him terrified and he's showing you images of like you two smiling and happy or, it becomes scarier as he's more desperate

"Don't-don't make me do something fucked up!! I'm serious, STOP RUNNING" and he's like freaking out, showing shit of trying to hold you down, tying you up, and/or shoving you into a locked room

Sudden thoughts of "what if the more emotional and unstable he becomes, the less he can control his intrusive thoughts and shows his more impulsive darker desires". He's tweeking and the screen glitches and you briefly think you see yourself completely restrained, blindfolded, gagged--

---he's just like OBVIOUSLY so prideful but also immature and whiny ("who gives a shit about alastor?" Well you, mr hes just quietly minding his own business and I'LL start beef because i feel threatened and STILL LOSE, like awww my poor little pogchamp got publicly humiliated in an argument HE started out of nowhere, he's my little sad wet baby lmaoooo) and we already know his relationship with Val can become physically abusive, so, you pair him staying in that kind of relationship, being codependent, with this personality of his, and I can just see.... ACTUALLY FUCKING TRIGGERED LIKE LITERALLY CRYING UPSET VOX BECAUSE YOU REJECTED HIM like he's pissed he's hurt he's lonely he's heartbroken and HELL NO IS HE GONNA ACCEPT THIS

Vox would be over here proudly claiming on his TV show that NO HE REJECTED Y O U, not the other way around! He's not upset! He's totally fine! Meanwhile everyone watching can tell this man is manic and visibly hotboxing copium, "I didn't even really like you anyways!!.... no, I mean, shit, fuck, COMMERCIAL BREAK--" *cut to technical difficulties screen because the man is CRYINGGG*

-- Valentino and Reader bonding over teasing Vox and making him flustered and of course, obviously, the inverse. I still kinda like the idea of "they both think you're cute but like nothing exciting until one night they bump into you unplanned and you're all dressed up". Like Val is from the 70s or 80s so they go to a roller rink disco whatever kinda place because I'm sure the coke game there is INSANE and you're just like, swaying your hips spinning around to Let It Whip or September or something dressed in some shorts that make your ass look just right 🤌

You're sneaking back into the studio after a night out and they're both lounging somewhere and Val's like "uhhhh who is THIS coming in without saying hi to Daddy?" and you pull your sunglasses down like "SIR??? 😳" And now HE'S flustered because he didn't know that was you and Vox is feeling some new kinda way because he's used to seeing you in like, your work uniform or casual wear

Val who then makes your work uniform really slutty and you have to serve him and Vox wearing it 😩❤️

---I have this thought of like lmao imagine walking down the sidewalk with Angel and seeing Vox on TV and Angel is like "ya know he can see everything outta dese things when he's plugged in" and you're like "bullshit, he couldn't possibly process that many screens at once, it'd overload his brain, he wouldnt be able to concentrate" and you're like "here I'll prove it, hey Vox, check it out you fucking dweeb" and flash him your bare titties or you MOON HIM

scenario A would be that he INSTANTLY barks out laughing, "hey Val, that dumb slut who brings you drinks just flashed me!" And he just totally shows it on the air, maybe partially censored, maybe not at all, your phone is ringing IMMEDIATELY, of COURSE it's Val, and Vox is broadcasting your mortified embarrassed expression, "our big story tonight: drunk bimbo fucks around and finds out! More updates after this word from our sponsor!" and the man will noooootttttttt stop bullying the fuck out of you afterwards, because he's got a crush on you and you're like someone weaker than him his insecure ass can punch down on

Scenario B is that he instantly turns pink and about 5 seconds later he blue screens and the entire city experiences a blackout and when he comes back on the air he's like stammering and, glancing at, it FEELS like he keeps glancing at you, but, is he really?

------

I dunno... like I'm sure Valentino is gonna wind up being unstable in his own way but I guess there's a certain, ALLURE to Vox being a little bratty and whiny while also having these very VERY handy, actually quite scary abilities and resources 👀 like boy show me what that screen do 😫💦

#yandere hazbin hotel #yandere x reader #vox x reader #yandere vox x reader #sinprompts #yandere stuff

[goat-yells-at-everything]

First art on a new tablet!

Grian having a crisis due to Watcher things. c:

I talk about my new tablet under the cut if your interested!

So, as an early birthday present I got an inexpensive portable tablet called a PicassoTab. I've had it for a bit but I've mainly used it to take notes for my externship and other things using the Squid notes app but I've finally sat down and pulled up mediabang and done real art.

So what do I think of this tablet?

The PicassoTab is an inexpensive general tablet that supports a real drawing pen. Basically, its a cheap iPad and apple pencil. Except I would definitely NOT call it cheap. Its actually a really nice little tablet and pen combo and I'm quite happy with it.

I'd liken it to my large Ugee tablet in terms of draw feel. Its very obviously a tablet and does not at all feel like drawing on paper. This can be a major downside for some artists to PLEASE keep that in mind. While I prefer my Gamon as far as draw feel, since I've used the Ugee before its not a huge downside and the portability makes up for that less than desirable draw feel.

The pen uses a single AAAA battery which isn't ideal imo. While it keeps the pen smaller and more pen sized, its a hard battery to find outside of online stores. Its not rechargeable so when the battery dies then you need a new one. Though there are rechargeable AAAAs out there, I dont know if they will fit as rechargeable batteries aren't the same size as their normal counterparts.

HOWEVER, I've been using this thing almost CONSTANTLY for over 2 weeks now and there is no sign of the pen dying so I think its got a good battery life and the passive discharge is minimal.

Whats nice about the Picasso is that its a general tablet as well as a drawing tablet. It has access to the play store and runs on android software. It came with 2 drawing apps installed and I really didn't care for them. But with access to the play store I was able to download mediabang which is a free software app that works wonderfully. It doesn't have all the same options as clip studio but its more than enough for the sketch book experience I want from this. I did make this art as a finished work on the Picasso but I didn't get it to replace my Gamon, just to replace the chunky sketchbooks and notebooks I used to carry around (and use less paper).

The other positive about it being a general tablet is that I can use it as a notebook, too. I write A LOT. Notes, lists, planners, ect. My house is stacked with notebooks of all shapes, sizes, and colors. I have SO MANY pens, too. Like WAY too many pens. But because the Picasso has access to the play store I can use the note app Squid to replace all of these notebooks and pens. I now carry around about 12 notebooks and counting in my purse and the notebooks have unlimited pages. Squid also lets you edit and move text after its written so its pretty easy to reorganize notes without rewriting everything.

So ya.

100% recommend if your looking for a portable sketchbook/notebook tablet.

#hermitcraft #grian #grian fanart #watcher grian #goat art #goat yells at hermits

[piived]

Justice is Swift (Vengeance is Sweet) — a DPxDC Dead on Main Fic

chapter two is officially here!

master post || <- ch.1 || ch.2 shitposts || ch.3 ->

CHAPTER TWO — KISS AND TELL

Summary —

Danny starts classes, meets a new friend, makes a trip to the Realms, and has some surprise visitors. Jason and Tim have MUCH to think about and research. So much research…

chapter word count — 9,148

full chapter under the cut, but for the best experience read on ao3 and consider leaving kudos/comments as they fuel me :)

𓆩⟡𓆪

CHAPTER TWO — KISS AND TELL

The first week of classes flew by for Danny and suddenly it was already Thursday and time for his scheduled meeting with Bernard and his mysterious boyfriend at the campus cafe in the two hours before their last lecture of the day.

He was running late, the notes from his last lecture still clutched in his hands and threatening to fly away as he booked his way across the quad towards the central student center building. He managed to slide past the closing door from another student entering and glanced around in search of Bernard’s blonde hair. He had texted Danny that they were there nearly ten minutes ago and sure enough, he spotted Bernard at a table in the corner, sitting across someone with a dark red hoodie and black hair.

He beelined for them and matched Bernard’s friendly grin, plopping down on the seat next to him and across from the guy who looked vaguely familiar but he couldn’t place.

“Hey, you made it!” Bernard laughed at Danny’s disheveled state, scooting a cup of what was hopefully very strong coffee towards him. “I thought Professor Montgomery was gonna try holding you all hostage or something.”

Danny huffed a laugh and started organizing his notes to put them in his bag correctly. “Sure felt like it,” Danny groaned, “man, that guy is the slowest talker I’ve ever heard, it’s excruciating.”

The guy across from him hummed in amusement, eyeing Danny’s sketches and notes, “Advanced Mechanical Engineering?”

Danny sighed, “Yeah, unfortunately.”

The guy hummed again, “You gotta be pretty clever to take that class as a freshman, did you test out or transfer credits from elsewhere?”

Danny shrugged and flushed a little bit, “I tested out but also did my generals online and transferred the credits so I can take more advanced classes earlier. My parents were scientists and I could probably pass intro and beginner mech engineering in my sleep.” He finally managed to get everything in his backpack sorted and turned fully towards him, holding out his hand. “Hi, sorry for being rude. I’m Danny Nightingale.”

The guy smirked a bit and grabbed his hand in a firm grip, “Timothy Drake, pleasure to meet you, Danny.”

Danny’s eyes widened and he glanced from Timothy Fucking Drake to Bernard who’s shit eating grin was growing by the second.

“You wouldn’t happen to be Timothy Drake-Wayne, would you?”

Timothy shrugged. “I prefer to go by Tim.”

Danny barked a laugh and shoved his elbow into Bernard’s side who grunted and shoved him back without much luck. Danny was solid when he wanted to be, thank you very much. “Well, my friend Tucker is going to absolutely lose it when I rub it in his face that I sat at the same table as his idol and had an actual conversation.”

Tim rested his chin in his hand and looked amused. “Oh yeah? Well, make his day and tell him I said hi.”

Danny cackled at that, “I don’t want to be that annoying guy but would you mind taking a selfie for proof? He’s the type to call bullshit without supporting evidence.”

Tim’s eyes actually twinkled at that, “Sounds like a smart guy. Sure.”

Danny grinned and pulled out his Tucker-modified phone, spinning in his seat and pulling Bernard with him so they were facing away from Tim and towards his camera, effectively getting them all in. “Say cheese!”

Tim put on a very obviously media trained smile that Danny now recognized from articles and paparazzi photos, and Bernard held up a peace sign while Danny classily flipped the camera off with a shit eating grin. He laughed and quickly sent it to Tucker with a cheeky ‘my new good friend Tim says hi.’

“Thanks, he’ll probably faint.”

“Well, anything for a fan,” Tim waved it off only half sarcastically, eyes locked on Danny’s phone that was now on the table. “What model is that?”

Bernard sighed ruefully and Danny shot him an amused look before answering Tim. “It was originally an old Wayne Tech, I think. Until Tuck got his hands on it and did whatever magic he does.” Danny gave the dog a bone and slid it over to Tim to inspect. “I don’t know exactly what he did but I think I have the detailed manual he lovingly and painstakingly crafted somewhere if you’re interested. Or I can send you his information and you can absolutely make his life by complimenting his handiwork,” Danny not so subtly suggested. He was a fantastic friend and wing man and if Tucker ever said otherwise he was a dirty rotten liar.

Tim hummed as he fiddled with the hardware and poked around on the lock screen. “Do you have a carrier?” He frowned, poking some more.

Danny shrugged, “I don’t think so? Tucker’s always ranting about them robbing the public blind so I think he made a way around it. Unless someone is mysteriously paying a bill I don’t know about, but I doubt it.” Plus the small fact that he had signal even in the Realms, a feat Danny was positive no regular carrier company could pull off.

“Huh,” Tim stated, fascinated.

Bernard groaned, “Great, now you have him hooked. Make sure you get that thing back from him or he’ll steal it and spend all night reverse engineering it and I’ll have to call Con to help me lure him out of his cave.”

Tim spared a glance to glare at his boyfriend and not so subtly kicked him under the table and Danny laughed, amused at their antics and reminded of his friends. “Who’s Con?”

Bernard lit up and Tim’s face got a little softer around the edges. Danny liked whoever this Con was already. “Our boyfriend! He doesn’t take classes here and is busy with work or else I’d have dragged him along but you’d like him!”

Danny laughed in disbelief and groaned into his hands. “You’re kidding me.”

He could practically feel Tim and Bernard stiffen and looked up quickly to see their stony expressions, a far cry from the light and openness from moments before and Danny kicked himself for ruining it. “You got a problem with that?” Tim asked flatly, eyes narrowed. Danny sensed the underlying danger in it all and held his hands up, blanching.

“No, no! Literally not at all,” he stammered in a rush, trying to bring back the happy feelings from before. “I’m just somehow doomed to be surrounded by poly relationships while my love life continues to be very much a disaster.”

Tim and Bernard shared a look and relaxed minutely but were still guarded so Danny slid his phone back to himself and pulled up his album dedicated solely to his favorite group of lovable idiots. “Here they are,” he said with a fond grin, showing the other two the latest picture of Sam, Val, and Tucker hugging and laughing at some diner or other, clearly lovesick and giddy (even Sam who rarely showed true emotion in photos). Bernard let out a loud, “Aww,” hand over his heart and Tim relaxed fully again, smile back, thank the Ancients.

Danny pointed to Tucker in the middle with fries sticking out of his mouth like fangs (Tucker was absolutely going to murder him—again—for showing Timothy Drake this particular picture, but Danny thought it was worth it). “That’s Tucker Foley, tech extraordinaire and my best friend since we were in diapers,” Tim cocked his head to take in the picture better, assessing, now that he could put a face to the tech. “He’s going to CalTech for Compsci and Engineering and Sam and Val,” he pointed to the two respectively, “are at UCLA for Environmental Sciences and Bio Engineering.”

Bernard let out an appreciative noise, “Tim, I love them already. Enviro Sci and Bio and Tech! They’re basically alternate us! Damn, I wish Con was here,” he pouted and pulled out his phone to presumably text said boyfriend. Danny laughed, and took his phone back, scrolling past other pictures with a smile. Oh how he missed his friends.

Tim slid his phone over and Danny took a look at a picture of the three of them, Bernard and Tim pressed to either side of who Danny presumed to be Con, a tall punk looking guy with circle sunglasses and artfully spiked up black hair. “That’s Conner,” Tim supplied with a smile edging towards fond.

Danny smiled back, “Damn, you guys are adorable.”

Bernard swooned against him and Tim flushed a bit and snatched his phone back. “I know, right,” Bernard cooed, and Danny laughed, shoving him back upright. “I’m like the luckiest guy in the world, somehow snagging a rich genius and a hot punk rocker. My life is like, the best,” Danny fake gagged and Tim rolled his eyes but took his boyfriend’s offered hand across the table.

“Fuck, I really thought I would be free of insufferably sappy trios that make me feel oh so insufferably single,” Danny sighed, thunking his head on the table.

Bernard patted his back in sympathy, “There, there,” he hummed, “I’m sure we can find you your very own harem in no time.”

Danny groaned, “Yeah, no thank you, I could barely handle one person at a time which is why I didn’t join their group in the first place despite their insistence that a ‘polycule’ has a better ring than a ‘tripoly’.”

“Well, then that makes it even easier. I think Tim has a couple spare siblings we can hook you up with — ow! Kidding!”

Tim glared and pointed a stern finger at his boyfriend, “Don’t even joke. Danny doesn’t deserve to be subjected to any of those heathens and you know it. He’d get eaten alive.”

“Hey!” Danny exclaimed, offended. “I’m tougher than I look!”

“No, no,” Bernard patted his shoulder in sympathy, “he’s totally right. I wouldn’t subject you to that realm of chaos.”

Oh, if only they knew that Danny literally ruled over an infinite realm of chaos. He just shook his head in amusement. “Yeah, well, I’ve seen pictures of you Waynes and let’s just say that if any of them made a pass I’d give them the green light, chaos be damned.”

Tim made a sound of disgust as Bernard cackled. “I knew I liked you for a reason, Danny.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Tim shook his head. “Though if you stick around long enough one of them is bound to bite. Or Bruce will take one look at you and try to adopt you, so I hope you’re not too attached to your parents.”

Danny dimmed a bit at the mention of his parents but managed a laugh. “Well he’s welcome to try, I’m sure they wouldn’t put up much of a fuss but he might have to fight my sister, and my money is on her.” Not to mention the fact that Vlad would have a total conniption if another billionaire got their hooks in him — but, on second thought, maybe Jazz's wrath would be worth it to see the fruit loop's expression when he showed up at the next gala that Vlad was always trying to trick him into attending as a Wayne... But no. He wouldn't want to risk Vlad doing something drastic like overshadowing poor Bruce Wayne just because Danny wanted to be an annoying little shit. Damn.

Bernard slung an arm over his shoulder and Tim gave him a calculating look which Danny ignored in favor of taking a sip of his neglected coffee, desperate for a change of subject. “Thanks for this, by the way,” he wiggled the cup. “What do I owe you?”

Bernard waved him off, “Don’t worry about it. Perks of dating a Wayne, they tend to get things for free around here.”

Tim shrugged and Danny wasn’t going to argue about free coffee so he let it drop.

Conversation flowed to lighter topics and soon enough Danny and Bernard had to leave for their Physics lecture. Tim pressed a kiss to Bernard’s cheek and waved goodbye to them both. Danny waved back and waited until he was out of sight before spinning around on Bernard.

“Dude! Timothy Drake-Wayne‽”

Bernard laughed, eyes twinkling, “Please, I knew him long before he got the Wayne name and he’s still as much of a nerd. Now he’s just a rich nerd with a better family.”

Danny blinked at that and huffed out an incredulous laugh, “Okay yeah, I get that. Sam is totally loaded too and she’s like the most unhinged person I know. But still, there’s rich and then there’s Wayne rich.”

Bernard shrugged, “Yeah but in the end it’s the person who matters, and Tim? He’s my best friend. He’s always been my best friend even when we didn’t talk for years and he’ll probably, hopefully, be my best friend forever. And he’s the reason I met Conner, too, and now I have both of them,” he got that stupidly sappy look in his eyes and Danny shoved him playfully.

“Yeah you guys are solid, I can tell. I’m glad I met you, Bernard,” Danny grinned.

Bernard rolled his eyes, “You can call me Berny or Benny or something if you want. Bernard is such a mouthful.”

“Yeah, okay Benny Boo Boo, Boo Boo Bear,” Danny teased, eyes alight with mischief.

“Did you just How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days me, Nightingale?” Benny laughed in shock and Danny cackled. “No way that’s sticking! I take it back, your nickname privilege is revoked, Danny! Danny!” Danny jogged further away, still laughing. “Call me Bernard, I beg! Daniel!”

Yeah, Danny liked his new friends a lot.

—

Saturday morning had Danny prepping for a quick trip to the Realms to check in on things when his phone rang with an incoming video call.

“Hello?” He answered absently around the pen cap he had in between his teeth.

“Danny, you’ve completely fried Tucker’s brain with your Timothy Drake stunt,” Sam glowered back at him and Danny laughed.

“Good to see you too Sam, I hope your first week back to classes have been going well, how’s Val?” Danny teased.

“Classes are as awful as ever and Val is ready to smother Tucker in his sleep if he doesn’t stop gushing over how Timothy Drake-Wayne said hello to him via you, you jerk. Now he’s looking for flights and trying to convince us that he can somehow miraculously miss a week of classes to go on a stalker fanboy trip and it’s all your fault!”

Danny cackled, “Oh that’s even better than I thought! Has he really looked for flights?”

Sam glared, “Yes. We had to hide his credit card. You better tell him not to be an idiot and fly across the country just to try and catch a glimpse of your little friend.”

Danny held his hands up in surrender, “Okay okay, I’ll give him a call and tell him how irresponsible he’d be to ditch his favorite place and people in the world for week to hang out with his literal icon and boy crush that I can most definitely get him in contact with.”

“You’re loving this, aren’t you?” Sam whined.

Danny grinned, “Yep,” popping the P. “But seriously, I’ll tell him to wait until fall break at least. No promises past that.”

“That works for us. We were already talking about hopefully making a trip back home for Thanksgiving so we can probably stop by Gotham without too much hassle.”

“Please do, I miss you guys,” Danny frowned. Sam smiled softly.

“Yeah we miss you too, loser. Whaddya got planned for today?”

Danny sighed, “A trip to the GZ, I gotta make sure everything’s still running and I’ve got a couple scheduled brawls to handle. It’ll be good, I’m getting antsy without the constant barrage of duels. I’m understanding why they visited me in Amity so frequently now.”

Sam laughed, “Ghosts are so weird. Have fun duking it out. Call tomorrow?”

Danny nodded, “Yep, Tucker made sure to put it on my schedule and I still get an annoying amount of reminders for it throughout the week.”

“Good, I’ll see you tomorrow then, stay out of trouble.” He managed to not laugh at the familiar words. Stay safe, Trouble. He so did not need to be thinking of Red Hood right now. The whole vigilante situation was a conversation to bring up when they were all together during their scheduled group call.

“Yeah, yeah, you too. Good luck with Tucker’s obsession and try to remember that you love him and would be devastated if Val actually killed him!”

Sam flipped him off before hanging up and Danny laughed.

He checked over his notes to make sure he wasn’t missing anything important that he had to prepare for and made sure his curtains were closed before transforming and ripping open a portal.

It’d gotten easier and easier over the years with practice and now that he was officially Prince Regent it was almost second nature. He slipped through and flew around leisurely, checking on things as he went until he finally made it to the council hall where the representatives were meeting.

It was a quick session, more to just keep him in the loop of things and keep in touch with his council friends, updating them on his mortal living and showing that he still took his responsibility as Prince Regent and Future King seriously. He wanted to do right by the Realms and he was insistent on proving himself worthy. It helped that he enjoyed spending time among the ghosts, not having to worry about hiding any part of himself and able to show off all of his abilities freely as needed. No carefully pulled punches necessary.

He parted ways with the council after the meeting had long dissolved into more gossip and light conversation than actual business and found Ember already waiting outside the building, leaning against a tree and idly strumming her guitar.

“Hey, Ember, how’s it been?”

Ember smiled at him and nodded, “Not too bad. A bit boring with the main Amity portal gone and our favorite punching bag in a city he banned us from, but we make do.”

Danny winced a little at her words. He knew the decisions to disable the portal and cut them off from Gotham sounded harsh, but he had talked it through with the Council and had all come to the agreement that it would be best. He didn’t want his parents or some other ghost hunting fanatics to go too crazy while he was gone and end up destroying the city or Ancients forbid actually capturing one of his ghosts, and he had no idea how Gotham would handle seeing his ghosts or what the Bat Clan might try and do to them. Until things had settled and he was sure it was safe, it was best to keep things contained to the Realms as much as possible.

“Well, I can help make things a bit more interesting now,” he smirked and she got the hint and swung her guitar at his head. He cackled, ducked, and the brawl began.

The best thing about fighting in the Infinite Realms was that he didn’t have to worry about any collateral damage or civilians getting hurt. He didn’t have to carefully direct the fight to more secluded areas or yell at stupid passerby’s to stop gawking and run. It was so much more fun on equal turf. He should have been doing this for years, really.

After a decent while of back and forth Ember finally called it quits, effectively worn out and seemingly pleased with the sparring. Danny felt better having been able to get some pent up energy out on a being that wouldn’t be completely disfigured by him punching with his full strength and shook out his arms in satisfaction.

“Don’t be a stranger, Phantom! Track me down next time you’re here,” Ember flicked him on the ear and left with him grumbling about normal ways to show affection.

He did track down a few other ghosts, checking in and getting the latest scoop (Elastica and Kitty) or having miniature brawls (Boxy and Johnny) to help relieve the buzzing burn of energy.

He left feeling satisfied and spent, muscles aching in the good, I-just-worked-out kinda way and core humming pleasantly in his chest.

—

Danny could tell someone was following him.

He had gotten pretty good at sensing prying eyes and his hackles were effectively raised, internal warning bells going haywire as he made the walk home from campus.

His last lecture had gotten out later than usual which meant Danny was walking in the dark, the sun setting earlier and earlier already and the dim, gloomy atmosphere of Gotham only enhancing the shadows even as the sun was still setting.

Danny made sure to look all around him, trying to figure out where the eyes were coming from. He debated skipping his normal alleyway shortcuts, seeing as how the last three days he’d had to step in to stop various muggings and drug deals, but he really just wanted to get home.

He toyed with the idea of a ghost being the one who was tracking him, but he knew he would have sensed it if it was. Which left a human or meta, and Danny didn’t like the thought of either.

Maybe it’s just a cute, stray alley cat. He tried to think positively but knew he wasn’t fooling anyone, especially not himself, a known liar.

He sighed and walked through the first alley without any incidents but still felt the eyes pinning him down. His hands were clenched in his hoodie pocket and his feet threatened to leave the ground to just fly him away faster than he could run, but he tamped down the urge. The last thing he needed was attention on him like that.

After making it through the third alley without a confrontation he debated not leading whoever was following him to his apartment, but figured it would be as good a place to kick someone’s ass as any and with a lesser chance of being seen using his powers if needed.

He skipped the elevator and trudged up the three flights of stairs and by the time he got to his apartment door, he knew someone was already inside. He debated turning intangible to see who exactly was waiting, but he didn’t know if they had cameras around and didn’t want to risk it. He took a steadying breath and unlocked his door quickly, flipping on the lights as soon as he got the door open and quickly shutting and locking it behind him.

He blinked at the guy standing in his living room, and then blinked again. “Red Robin?” He asked in shock. Of all the people he expected, one of Batman’s Squad of Vigilantes wasn’t one of them. Which, he really shouldn’t have been that surprised considering his encounter with Red Hood.

“Daniel Fenton,” Red Robin said and Danny flinched at the name.

“Nightingale, actually. I got it changed. And I prefer Danny,” He slowly toed off his sneakers and set his bag on the table. It was only then that he saw Red Hood leaning against his kitchen counter. He sighed resentfully.

“Really? I thought you said you wouldn’t tell your buddies about me,” Danny folded his arms and glared at the masked Vigilante who held up his hands.

“Hey, I don’t kiss and tell.” Danny could swear the guy was smirking under his mask and Red Robin spluttered.

“Kiss? Hood, please tell me you did not kiss a civilian,” he sounded exasperated.

Danny was a little miffed himself. “I don’t think we kissed. I think I would have definitely remembered that happening.”

“Oh trust me, you’ll know when I kiss you,” Red Hood said, voice low and deep, and Red Robin pinched the bridge of his nose as Danny's gut did a little flip.

Huh. He'd have to unpack that later.

“Okay, no more talking about kissing. Ignoring the fact that you somehow already know each other, and yes, Hood, we will be having words about that,” he glared and pointed accusingly at the still-pleased-with-himself vigilante, “I’m here to talk about you, Nightingale. Primarily, why you’re linked to over thirteen mysteriously stopped muggings and drug deals, all of which took place on your routes home from school.”

“Wow, okay, stalker much?” Danny scoffed, crossing his arms and internally panicking. He’d been caught. Somehow. Play it cool, play it cool. “What do you mean, ‘mysteriously stopped'?”

Red Robin sighed, pulling out a folder of something and setting it down beside Danny’s bag, gesturing for him to look through. He did so, flipping through images of what had to be some sort of surveillance videos of what were indeed, very familiar muggers and victims. Danny looked up at Red Robin with an eyebrow raised.

“Aaand,” he drew the word out, “am I supposed to be seeing something here besides some vaguely disturbing crime scene photos? None of these guys are dead, are they? That’d be a kinda fucked up thing to show me, dude.” Not that he was any stranger to death, and he knew for a fact that none of them were dead, but if he was actually a civilian? Yeah, that’d be fucked up.

Red Robin scoffed, “No, none of them are dead. And that’s exactly the point. All of these guys were caught in the act of mugging someone but the person or thing that stopped them never shows up on the cameras. That shouldn’t be possible.”

Danny shrugged for real that time, “And what do I have to do with this? That sounds like a meta with invisibility or something to me and last I checked, I’m definitely not a meta.”

Red Robin pulled out another folder, and Danny was hesitant to flip it open, but forced himself to anyways. He saw pictures of himself walking on the street or down the familiar alleyways. “Holy shit,” he said bluntly, “You really are a fucking stalker. What the hell are you taking pictures of me for?”

Red Robin tapped the top picture of him walking on the street, clearly coming back from school. “Surveillance caught you walking towards the alleyways right around the time of each incident,” Red Robin explained, “You’re seen going in, but never seen coming out on either side, and the muggings all somehow get stopped at the same time.”

Danny’s heart sped up a little bit. Fuck.

“You can see how that looks a little bit suspicious?”

Danny rolled his eyes.

“You don’t think I’ve ever seen something shady happening and gotten the fuck out of dodge? It happens way more often than you think and I try the alleys everyday because it’s so much faster, but sometimes I have to take the long way around instead and leave the crime fighting to creepy assholes like yourself,” Red Hood snorted at that and Red Robin sent him a glare, “If you’re saying that none of you or your little swarm of Bats stopped these guys, maybe you should take that as a sign that you’re not doing your jobs very well and when you find whoever did stop them maybe consider a nice thank you card or a gift basket instead of invading their home and privacy.”

Red Robin sighed in frustration and ignored everything but the first part of Danny’s speech, “See, we’ve checked literally every single angle. We know you couldn’t have left any other way without us seeing you, even with the blind spots! There’s no way for you to not be somehow involved.”

Well, time to do some better bullshitting, then. The mention of blind spots eased some of his worries. It seemed that at least they fortunately hadn’t seen him actively transform, and if Red Hood really hadn’t mentioned what he had seen… Danny sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face as he decided which route he wanted to take with this. Maybe he could clear himself of both instances if he played this right. “You clearly did enough research to figure out my given last name. Did you happen to check out my parents at all?”

Red Robin seemed taken aback by the question. “Drs. Jack and Madeline Fenton. Most of their work and research has been either heavily redacted or taken down completely, but from my understanding they’ve been rather dedicated to the research of the paranormal, correct?” His tone suggested exactly what the thought of that line of research.

Danny shrugged and laughed derisively, “Yeah that’s one way of putting it. I’d just call them rabid ghost hunters and be done with the fancy talk, though.”

Red Robin cocked his head, “Ghost hunters?” He asked, skepticism clear in his voice.

“Yep,” Danny said, popping the P. “Completely obsessed with it since college. Spend their entire lives dedicated to proving the existence of ghosts and planning out experiments they’d do if they ever successfully caught one.” Danny had to take a deep breath and blink away the memories of exactly the type of experiments they had done when they caught him. “I practically grew up in the lab they set up in our basement, surrounded by ghost finders, ghost gloves, ghost vacuums, you name it.”

“Okay,” Red Robin drew out, clearly trying to figure out why Danny was telling them this.

“How much research did you do on Amity Park itself?”

Red Robin shrugged, “Not much, I’ll admit, but nothing of substance stood out to merit further digging.”

Danny scoffed, “You should try again. I think you’ll find it very enlightening if you’re as good as they say. I know they tried their best to bury all the shit with the Guys In White, but they can’t have gotten everything. Try there first.”

“Guys In White?” Red Hood finally chimed in, curious.

Danny shrugged. “Some half-baked government agency. Tried enforcing martial law in Amity for a while, didn’t really stick,” he smirked at the memory, “I think their official agency name was Ghost Investigation Ward or some bullshit, but they dressed in all white and high schoolers are so very creative. I’ll let you figure the rest out, Detective.”

Red Robin was typing furiously on his wrist cuff and Danny assumed it was a list of things to research. “Now, are you guys done with the entering part of the breaking and entering or do you want to steal my leftovers as well, in for a penny and all that?”

“Well, if you’re offering to have me over for dinner,” Red Hood crooned but Red Robin interrupted, rudely. Danny shared a look with Red Hood as his partner paced around Danny’s small living room. Danny noticed the uncomfortable swirling was back in his gut and frowned, trying to pin point when it had started and why.

“Wait, wait, wait! Are you insinuating what I think you are?” Red Robin asked, voice higher than it was a minute ago. Danny turned his attention back to him and shrugged.

“Depends on what you think that is; you know what they say about assuming. But if it’s about getting the fuck out of my apartment, yes, I thought I made that clear enough.”

Red Robin stopped pacing and stared wide-eyed at Danny. “Ghosts. You’re insinuating that there are actual ghosts and that one might be what, lurking around the area, stopping muggings conveniently at the same time you’re walking home from school?”

“I think the correct term is haunt, not lurk,” Danny helpfully corrected.

Red Robin stared at him for a long moment before blinking, “Holy shit you’re serious.”

“Deadly,” Danny joked to himself. Red Hood snorted. Score.

“But! That can’t be it. Ghosts aren’t—“

“What? They aren’t real? The good old JL doesn’t have any files or databases on the subject?” Danny’s voice dripped with venom. He had his opinions on the Justice League and none of them were very flattering.

“They do, but they’re so sparse and the sources are so old they’re hardly credible,” Red Robin resumed pacing, seeming more and more frantic.

“Yeah okay, that sucks for you. Maybe do some more research and get those files updated. Have fun with that.” Danny was done being subtle. He glanced at Red Hood who seemed to catch his vibe.

“Red, time to go.”

Red Robin stopped and stared at them incredulously, “Seriously? Nightingale, I know you have more information. Why not just share it so we can figure out who this person or ghost or whatever is?”

Danny shrugged, “Maybe I don’t kiss and tell either. Maybe this ‘person-ghost-thing’,” he quoted Red’s earlier word when talking about whatever was stopping the muggings, “doesn’t want to be found. I’ve given you plenty to chew on so go have fun and don’t bother me for a while. Maybe learn to knock or call like civilized people while you’re at it.”

“Yep, we’re going. Red, grab your files or lose them,” Red Robin grumbled but reluctantly swiped the photos back into the files and followed Hood to the window they clearly came in through.

Hood made sure Red got all the way out before turning to Danny and giving a two finger salute, “Always a pleasure, Trouble.”

Danny shook his head with a rueful grin, “Likewise, Hood,” and then took a chance, “Does the League keep logs of distress calls?”

Hood’s head cocked to the side but after a moment’s hesitation he nodded, “Yeah. Extensively.”

Danny nodded and then requested, “Look into any calls sent from Amity starting about six years ago. See why no one came to help.”

Hood sucked in a little breath, seemingly surprised, and nodded again. “Will do. I’ll let you know what I find?”

Danny was a bit surprised by the offer, it was more of a concession than he expected from the vigilante with how secure and classified he was sure the League kept their records. His stomach lurched and he swallowed thickly. “Thanks,” and as the vigilante turned to leave he surprised both of them by saying, “Hood?”

The vigilante stopped and turned to him once again. Danny would guess his eyebrow would be raised if he could see it. “The offer for dinner stands if you want it, anytime.”

He didn’t know where the words came from but found himself not regretting them. There was something about the guy that drew Danny in. The swirling intensified.

Danny could have sworn Hood was smiling under his mask when he said, “I’ll make sure to knock, all civilized like.”

Danny laughed as the window shut behind them and he was finally left alone in his apartment.

“Finally! I thought they were going to be here foreverrr,” well, almost alone.

“Hey squirt,” Danny grinned down at the teenager currently hugging him. “How you doing, Ellie? And what took you so long? I told you I was moving weeks ago and you promised to stop by sooner! I had to ask around the GZ to see when the last time anyone saw you semi-alive and well or if I had to track you down in some lab or something.” The words were light, but they both knew they held more serious meaning. After all, ending up in a lab was a genuine concern and possibility for them.

Ellie pulled back and grinned sheepishly, “I know, sorry! I got distracted in Japan and then I lost track of time in the Zone, you know how it is.”

Danny sighed and pulled her back in for a short hug, “Yeah, I know.” Time was a little wonky in the Realms. You had to be careful not to spend too much time or before you know it a week could pass by in the mortal plane. “I’m glad you’re here now, though your timing kind of sucked. How much of all that did you see?”

Ellie snorted, “Oh, all of it. I was here before they decided to break in but I knew you were coming up so I wanted to see what you’d do first when they didn’t start stealing or tearing the place apart. I’m surprised you didn’t sense me.”

Danny shrugged, “I did eventually but I was a bit distracted with them stalking me and all that I didn’t notice at first. I’m not nearly as sensitive to you as I am others unless I’m focusing.”

“Yeah, yeah, shared DNA, yada yada,” she flopped down on his couch and he went to his fridge to pull out a couple containers of leftovers. He was starving. And tired. He paused when he saw a large container with a note on it.

You dropped yours. Forgive me for being rude? — RH

It was from the diner he’d been at before his mugging and first Red Hood encounter. He was oddly touched and chose to ignore the fact that the vigilante had either been observant enough to note the diner’s name on the spilled container or had gone back to check. He was too hungry to care. He pulled another container out for Ellie and grabbed some forks.

He gave the food to Ellie who took it gratefully, not even asking what it was before shoveling it into her mouth. He sat down next to her and she asked him questions while she chewed. He loved the disgusting little gremlin, he reminded himself. A lot. “Soooo,” she drew out, “who were those guys and what was all that about?”

Danny sighed and explained everything that had been going on. She nodded along and by the end she was laughing. “You’re trying to get them to believe that you have a ghost helping you out?”

Danny nodded, “Or that I’m helping Phantom out. Maybe I let him tag along to Gotham to get away from Amity’s ghost hunters,” he shrugged. “I’ll decide depending on what conclusions Red Robin scrounges up I guess.”

“And this Red Hood guy?” She wagged her eyebrows and Danny shoved her over.

“It’s not like that!”

“You invited him for dinner!” She cried, laughter clear in her voice. “And he was obviously flirting with you like every time he spoke! He liiiikes you,” she sang and jumped away as Danny tried to poke her in the side.

“Hey! No he doesn’t! I’m sure he’s like that with everyone!” He tried to defend himself. She stared at him like he was stupid. “What?” He asked defensively.

“You’re joking. Red Hood? The Red Hood? He’s definitely not like that with everybody. I think he’s more prone to murder and shooting first asking questions later, not flirty banter and inviting himself to dinners.”

“Oh yeah?” Danny asked, “And how do you know so much about him? Isn’t this your first time in Gotham?”

Ellie shrugged, “Word spreads around and the internet is very useful.”

Danny had to give that to her. “Fine, but still. I don’t see how he’s serious. Like you said, he’s The Red Hood. Capital ‘The’ and everything.”

“So? You’re The Phantom. Badasses are drawn to each other I guess,” Ellie shrugged all casual like as if the words didn’t make Danny want to cry. His little sister thought he was a badass.

“So how long are you staying?” He deflected, even if it was the answer he was dreading most. Ellie hadn’t stayed anywhere for very long since she escaped from Vlad. Danny and Jazz refused to try and force her to stick around anywhere, letting her have her freedom, but it was hard to let her go sometimes. Okay, every time.

Ellie darted her eyes around and bit her lip. Nervous. Danny braced himself for her to drop the bomb that she was leaving right then, not even staying the night. It wouldn’t be the first time but they always crushed him the most.

“Uh, I was actually hoping to maybe stay with you long-term?” Her voice was small and hopeful and Danny melted.

“Of course, pipsqueak,” he tried not to sound too eager. “You can stay as long as you want.”

She relaxed a little bit but kept fidgeting, “Okay but I’ve been thinking,” she hedged and Danny patted the seat next to him for her to sit down. She did, “I’ve been thinking about school.” She said it in a rush and Danny blinked.

“Okay,” he said easily. It’s not as if he and Jazz hadn’t considered it a possibility before but they hadn’t wanted to try and force her into it.

“Okay?” She asked, eyes large and waiting.

“Okay,” Danny repeated with a smile, “We have all of your documents and we can make either Jazz or I your legal guardian at any time, we were just waiting to see if we’d need to do it. I can get everything ready and we can find somewhere to enroll you in whenever you want.”

She flung her arms around him and buried her face in his shoulder, “Thank you.”

He held onto her back just as tightly. “Of course, Ellie. Whatever you need.” He looked around his tiny studio apartment and cringed a little bit. “We might need to go apartment hunting again though, I don’t want you sleeping on the couch forever.”

Ellie shrugged, still not letting go. “I don’t mind,” she said and Danny laughed.

“Sure, but I do. If we’re doing this I want to do it right and give you the best you deserve.”

She pulled back slightly and opted for leaning against him, drawing his arm around her shoulder. He tucked her against his side. “Okay. But you really don’t need to move just for me.”

“Yeah, yeah, let me and Jazz worry about that. We’ll make it all work. I’m just happy to have you around, it was getting kinda lonely here without any other ghosts.”

She smiled and nestled closer, “Yeah, it gets kinda lonely without you or Jazz.”

Danny closed his eyes and willed away the building tears. He wondered how long she’d been feeling like that, but decided not to dwell on it. She was here now, and that’s all that mattered.

𓆩⟡𓆪

Tim frowned, pressed against the bricks outside the window as he waited for Hood, ready to hash out what they had just learned. Danny’s question about the logs made him curious and then his heart had dropped at the insinuation that something bad enough had happened in Amity to warrant the Justice League’s help. Even more concerning that the plea for help had seemingly gone unanswered.

“See why no one came to help.“

He itched to search the logs that very moment, but he focused back on Danny as he stopped Hood again, only this time his words had Tim nearly scoffing in surprise, settling instead on rolling his eyes and wanting to gag. He had been worried about Danny’s involvement in the muggings and possibly being a meta before, but now he was worried for the guy’s sanity. Honestly, inviting Red Hood to dinner, ‘anytime.’

Tim made a mental note to somehow work a discussion about basic safety and stranger danger and maybe not inviting crime lords into your house during their next cafe session.

Tim was absolutely hounding Jason for his apparent already established history with Danny if they were comfortable enough to flirt in front of his face and make plans for a date. (Really, why’d it have to be Jason of all possible vigilantes? What had Tim done to deserve this? Bernard and Con were going to be absolutely insufferable about this. Bart, Jaime, and Cassie were never allowed to know.)

He leveled Hood with a piercing glare as the infuriating vigilante finally swung out of the window, closing it aptly behind him. Before Tim could say anything (primarily: ‘What the fuck?’), Jason had tossed him a mocking salute and grappled away. Tim sighed in frustration and pursued, recognizing immediately that they were not headed to the Cave.

Fine by him, he’d be getting his answers one way or another and if Jason tried to stop him he’d have to face the disappointment of losing because Tim was not in the mood to beat around the bush and play their regular game of cat and mouse (and if Jason ever found out that he viewed him as the mouse Tim would probably be shot somewhere sensitive).

He followed Jason through the city and was a little surprised that they were headed to what Tim knew as his main apartment and not one of his many safe houses that he normally preferred to have any vigilante business talks (not that they had very many anyway, with how much of a point Jason made of not wanting to work with them).

He steeled himself for an aggravating conversation and a sleepless few nights ahead of him and swung through the window that Hood had even had the decency to leave open behind him.

𓆩⟡𓆪

Jason had no intention of following Tim to the Cave but he made no attempt to stop Tim from following him back to his apartment. He knew the conversation was inevitable so may as well bite the bullet and get it over with now and not have to deal with passive aggressive or heaven fucking forbid whiny Tim. Jason shuddered at the thought. No, much better to get it over with then, while it was still fresh.

He crawled through his own window, not wanting to walk through the halls in his suit (not that anyone would be surprised in this particular residence, but still, principles and all that). He almost entertained the idea of slamming the window shut and making Tim work to get himself in but figured the bastard might be in the mood to just break the window to speed things up. Tim was truly no fun like this.

“What the fuck‽” Tim immediately rounded on Jason when the window was firmly closed and the curtains drawn. “You didn’t think to tell me you knew my suspect? Is that why you came along?” It was exactly why Jason went with Tim when he heard about the investigation he and Oracle were doing. It wasn’t his fault Tim didn’t ask better questions before letting him tag along.

Jason shrugged, “Oh, I definitely thought to tell you. But then I thought ‘eh, better not’. Much more fun that way.”

“How do you know him?” Suspicious bastard. “And why didn’t he want you to tell your ‘buddies’ about him?” Jason matched Tim’s disdain for the descriptor, wrinkling his nose before sighing and discarding his helmet and settling in at the island bar.

“I saw him getting mugged,” Jason shrugged. Tim narrowed his eyes.

“And?” He prompted when Jason made no attempt to continue.

“And he took the fucker three times his size down with one well placed hit so I accused him of being a meta, which he didn’t take very well,” he omitted the part about the intangibility or phasing or whatever he'd seen, or thought he'd seen, and he wasn't entirely sure why. Maybe he wanted to protect Danny from the full Bat Battalion if the guy did end up having some extra skill sets that B would see as a potential threat. (Maybe Danny's accusations from their first meeting still stung and he wasn't eager to piss off the possible meta anymore than he already had by spreading the information and therefore breaching his privacy even more.) If Tim was as good of a detective as they all claimed, he'd find out soon enough anyway. No need for Jason to be a snitch about it. He wasn't a fucking cop, after all.

Tim’s eyes widened a bit, clearly surprised at that piece of information but Jason continued before he could interrupt with more useless questions. “Look, I barely had a conversation with the guy,” which, was true. “I recognized him when Babs had his info pulled up and wanted to know what it was all about. Now, what do you have on him?”

Tim looked like he wanted to keep fighting but he deflated and leaned against the wall, “Just— don’t play around with him, Jay.”

Oh, Little Timmy was serious about this. Jason narrowed his eyes. “Why?” Not that he was planning on ‘playing’ with Danny, but he wanted to know why Tim of all people was invested. After all, Danny was his suspect.

Tim sighed dejectedly, as if he was suddenly bone tired. “He’s friends with Berny. They met at orientation and they share some classes. I talked with him for like two hours the other day and he’s —“ Tim ran a hand through his hair, “fuck, he’s nice. He’s funny, he talks about his friends like they’re his whole world and is smart enough to have the best full ride we offer and is taking advanced classes as a freshman. I just — I’m really hoping he’s not actually tied up in something messy that B is gonna have to get involved with and possibly ruin an actual, normal, friendship for Berny. I just don’t know.”

The admission caught Jason a bit off guard. For Tim to admit that he 'didn't know' something was rare and a clear indication that this situation was more serious than Jason had originally anticipated. Mixing personal life and business — how fun. But Jason stared at his replacement brother in a bit of concern. Tim was really, really invested in this kid. And Jason found himself right there with him. Something about Danny just drew him in and kept him there, and with all the new information he was only more intrigued. He sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face.

“Replacement,” Tim scowled at the name but they both knew it didn’t hold the same weight it used to. They had come a long way since Jason had first come back and while there was still the shadow of tension looming over them nearly all the time, they were steadily making progress. That didn’t mean Jason wanted to stop being an asshole (just maybe not a murderous asshole). “I’m not going to fuck around with him. I’ll help ya out, figure out what’s going on with him and try to keep him out of trouble and off of B’s radar for as long as possible.”

Tim looked at him with a bit of hope and bit like he expected Jason to jump out and say ‘Psych! Gotcha!’. It shouldn’t bother Jason as much as it did. “Really?” Tim asked and then immediately seemed to regret it. But Jason just nodded, dead serious (ha).

“Really.”

Tim finally let himself show a ghost of a smile. (Ha. Ghost. Imagine that, ghosts being real all this time. Right under their noses. The Justice League would pitch a fit if it ended up being true, Jason could imagine it now.)

“Okay, then,” he pulled out his files once again and set them in front of Jason to peruse. “I ran a basic background check on him before I knew he was tied up in the muggings case, y’know, since he was hanging out with Bernard so much.”

Jason nodded. They were all paranoid as shit, thanks to both their very public lives and their side work and all knew to run background checks on anyone they’d be spending any amount of time with.

“I clearly need to do more digging and find out more about these ‘Guys in White’ but nothing substantial came up on my first search to raise any red flags besides the name change and his parents' strange research,” Tim sounded troubled and Jason agreed. From the concerns that Danny had brought up with the call logs and his hints at researching the town more, there was clearly something Tim had missed, which raised alarm bells in itself. Tim rarely missed something, especially something as big as Danny insinuated, which either meant things were purposefully buried (concerning) or Tim had been blinded by his personal connection to Danny (unlikely). “Which I clearly need to find the complete versions of. I want to know what exactly has been redacted and why.”

Jason nodded, flipping through the printed research that was indeed heavily blacked out. It all sounded like cooky bullshit to him, but he found himself believing Danny when he said that there was truth behind it and he knew Tim would find out exactly what was hiding in the reports.

“Start with the call logs?” It had been disturbing Jason since Danny had asked about it and he knew Tim had heard the whole thing from outside the window. They shared a serious look about it now.

'See why no one came to help.’ What the fuck happened in Amity?

“Yeah, I’m starting there and looking deeper into Amity as a whole while I’m at it now that I know not to disregard any mention of ghosts as like, a tourist ploy or nut jobs,” Tim confirmed and Jason nodded.

“Keep me updated?”

“Yeah, and if you decide to do any digging yourself we can compare notes.”

“Sure thing, Timberina,” Jason said with a smirk, reveling in the way Tim rolled his eyes.

“Still fucking terrible, you know,” he grouched.

Jason gave him a shit-eating grin, “Oh, I know. Now get the fuck out of here, don’t you have investigating to do or boyfriends to smooch?”

Tim flipped him off before making a swift exit, even closing the window behind him. Maybe there was hope for them yet.

‘The offer for dinner stands if you want it, anytime.’

And there was what he really wanted to think about. Because. Holy fuck. Danny had invited him to have dinner with him. Anytime. He hadn’t even seen his apology leftover note and had already been willing to give Red Hood another chance.

Jesus Christ, what was he, a thirteen year old girl? His heart did not need to be skipping a beat at the thought, thank you very fucking much.

He didn’t even know he could trust the guy yet. Especially with all the information Tim had supplied — Jason had a sneaking suspicion Danny was way more involved in everything then he had let on despite his insistence and deflections. Now with the whole added ghost aspect…

Jason wasn’t the type to trust or take people at their word alone. He was the type to shoot first and contingency plan around possible lies and deception. And yet… Danny was somehow slipping past all of Jason’s defenses and he somehow found himself wanting to trust the man despite it all.

Danny was a mystery wrapped up in an enigma and Jason couldn’t wait to figure him out. He just hoped no one would get burned in the process.

#vee’s writing #vee’s wips #vee’s dpxdc fics #jisvis #jisvis ch.2 #dpxdc #dead on main #dpxdc fic #dead on main fic

[magic-aggy]

new OC, her name is Rune-8. Part of some mlpfim AU stuff about ancient cosmic empires, cloning, and terraforming. She's about the same height as the CMC despite being an adult.

image text: Vat grown pilot a space-faring empire in the distant past. Her ship was destroyed over what would one day be known as Equestria, forcing her to land on the future site of Ponyville. Left to die as the empire fell. Survived untold millennia in the pod's cryogenic stasis. Discovered in a cave by Maud.

Struggling to adapt to the society she finds herself in.

more info, some sketches, and more thoughts under the read more.

please ignore the spelling errors i was high and very sleep deprived when i made this and i do not have the wherewithal to go back and fix them.

basically they're a grown to order clone that was widely used in her society for dangerous or menial work. the template she was grown from is the 'Rune' model pilot. a budget option with the bare minimum implants, optimised for living in low or zero gravity for extended periods. She was loaded with some basic ship maintenance and engineering databases after she was grown, cheap ones, so that the company responsible for the ship she was on could cut costs by not paying for any dedicated engineers. she was the 8th of a crew of 12, and the only survivor when her ship was destroyed in orbit over Equestria.

Their escape pod landed long ago enough that it was submerged in many layers of sediment, lost like a fossil in the cave system below Ponyville.

She clings to Maud, as the first friendly face she met in this strange new world.

Her eyes are cybernetic implants, but she was grown without eyes, and had these implanted before she ever became conscious. They contain hardware that let her wirelessly interface with their ship's computers, and provide her with access to a simple HUD, her personal database, and when in range with a wireless network she can connect and access whatever is stored there.

She is inspired by a Hyracotherium, the prehistoric ancestor of the modern horse, as well as the protagonist from the Murderbot Diaries.

Her body is best suited to low or zero gravity, designed for only temporary stints on planetary gravity. Thus she finds it very difficult and physically taxing to live on the surface of a planet. She is undergoing physical therapy at Ponyville Hospital to try and build up her muscle mass so that she can achieve a better quality of life in the world she is forever stranded in.

Will eventually go on to find a calling designing new and innovative airships, revolutionising public transport in Equestria and it's neighbours.

Vat grown creatures like her are typically genderless, but after some time in Equestria she found herself strangely drawn to mares and femininity. They don't feel the need to label themself particularly, especially in a society that tries as hard as it can to welcome to all identities, but she's something like a trans mare. Prefers she, but is also comfortable with they.

gay little prehistoric horse idk.

#mlp #my little pony #mlp oc #mlp fim #original character #hashtag blogging with aggy #horse drawn art #my oc: rune8 #my oc

[gs0nk]

Right after I finished Aiden's route in Baldur's Gate 3, I decided to write a small text that will complete his own ending. I included Lorroakan here, cause in my version of timeline, they started to feel close to each other after first met (in which Aiden kicked Lorchie's ass really hard because he's a slavery hater and chain breaker for sure)

I also made a sketch illustration for this moment! Hope you'll enjoy reading this uwu

Lorroakan hated leaving his tower - even the invasion of illithids from the depths of the underground city could not shake his principles, and it was much easier to manage defensive processes while maintaining an unstable flow of magical energy in safety inside than outside in the epicenter of the massacre. Let those who consider themselves defenders of the city do this. However… The thought of one particular person never left my head even when it became clear: victory was on the side of the adventurers who decided to fight back the threat.

And yet, when it was all over, the cries of the defeated, newly converted victims of ceremorphosis died, and the refugees stopped bothering him with attempts to break into his house, the magician decided to go outside. The last words of the half-elf, whom he had seen quite often lately, did not want to leave his head - so often that he managed to get used to them and their “friends”, who had a habit of showing up on the threshold of the tower in their dirty armor, soaked in someone’s blood, brazenly examining every corner of his house for a moment, and even, it seems, stealing a couple of artifacts from him in the process. An unthinkable insolence that he could not tolerate and yet for some reason he forgave everything to his newfound acquaintance.

The magician himself was now thinking about how he would arrogantly reprimand this friend of his for the fact that solely because of him Lorroakan had to bother descending into a literal hell on earth, having the opportunity to contemplate the carnage that had taken place and endure the presence of not only ordinary, still frightened people, but also the stench of an alien city, wounded and practically destroyed.

Without bothering with pleasantries, he asked the aimlessly wandering locals about the heroes who put an end to the Absolute. Some still clutched makeshift weapons in their hands, unable to believe that the danger had retreated from Baldur's Gate, that it was all over. Finally, a couple of “unwashed militiamen” pointed to the pier - where the very same half-elf whom the magician so wanted to find was last seen.

Lorroakan, cursing everything that came into his field of vision, finally reached the right place and went down to the boardwalk of the pier. He did not take his eyes off the lonely silhouette of a young man in the rays of the setting sun, as if worried that he would now disappear like an illusory haze. That did not happen.

However, the magician tried to hide all unnecessary emotions, coming very close to the one he was so zealously looking for. Without wasting time on unnecessary honors to the “savior of the city,” he chuckled disdainfully:

- Are you without companions this time? Where is your noisy group of ragamuffins?

Aiden didn’t turn around at the stranger’s voice, but a smile was visible on theirs tired face. They wiped their own blood from the cut on cheek and shrugged.

- It's all over. Our story came to an end and everyone went their separate ways, and you were late for a tearful send-off. We don’t yet know which road we prefer.

The half-elf pulled a strand of red hair behind his ear and exhaled with a whistle.

- For the first time in many months, there is one less voice obsessed with world domination in my head. This change is surprisingly difficult to get used to, at least for now. And you? Have you come here to balance my loss? You're a so-so manipulator, don't flatter yourself with hopes.

Aiden didn’t see, but they knew perfectly well that the magician was now rolling his eyes and raising his right hand in a mannered gesture, as he always did, expressing his displeasure. Lorroakan crossed his arms and chuckled again.

- Oh, i beg you, how can I compete with your friends on the other side! Lolth, the incubus of Raphael, the Thai ghouls, your fragmented self, maybe there is someone else I don’t know about… But that’s not what I’m here for.

The magician crosses his arms over his chest and looks into the distance, where the sun is slowly sinking into the stormy ocean waters.

- I wanted to generously offer to stay in this terrible damn city, with me. After all your undoubtedly disgusting attempts to sabotage my well-deserved immortality, cripple me several times over that misunderstanding with the aasimar, and deprive me of my clueless student, I want, no, I demand, that you should live in my tower. You can take any vacant servant's position; today many of them chose to posthumously change their occupation.

The half-elf finally turns around and looks at Lorroacan mockingly, tilting their head slightly to the side.

- After becoming the savior of – no less – the entire world, being your servant is a huge step backwards, don’t you think?

Aiden takes a step towards the wizard and rests their forehead on his chest.

- Luckily for you, my services hardly require payment and we have no home to which we could return. And… We managed to get used to you.

- Hell, just don't force me to tell you the same thing!

Lorroakan frowns, but then the magician half-whispers and his voice is devoid of all feigned mannerisms:

- I need you. So I ask you to stay with me.

They will spend this night and all subsequent ones together.

The half-elf's hands rest on mage's shoulders. The wizard allows himself to exhale, hugging Aiden back.

Huddled close to each other, they watch as the unbearably long day recedes under the onslaught of dusk and the sun finally plunges into the depths of the waters.

#my art #digital art #artists on tumblr #digital drawing #sketch #baldurs gate #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #baldurs gate tav #bg3 tav #tav #lorroakan #lorraiden #art: aiden #text: aiden

[aparedes]

❝ I have this disease late at night sometimes, involving alcohol and the telephone. ❞

Age: 40

Gender identification: Cis female, she/her

Residential area: Masonboro

Occupation: Book cover artist & voice actor

Two positive traits: Independent & compassionate

Two negative traits: Hedonistic & aloof

Length of time in Wilmington: 25 years

Faceclaim: Nathalie Kelley

sunset gazing from the porch, wine drunk late night texts and calls to ghosts, paint stained fingers, always remembers your name, a wild spark that devours from within, an ipad pro and sketchbook weighing down her bag, a faint accent from a distant life, and eyes that can't hide the pain of unfulfillment

Trigger warnings: death

Born and raised in Lima, Peru, Angelia’s earliest memories are of running around the resort hotel both of her parents worked at. Her mother was a desk clerk and her father was a groundskeeper. They were a small but happy family that loved smiling and the company of each other. It was Angelia’s childhood where she remembers feeling the most love in her life. Even before she could walk her body was in motion trying to dance and wiggle around. So once she’d taken those first steps and elated her parents, Angelia was enrolled in dance class with what little money they could set aside for it. Sometimes each of her parents worked overtime and extra shifts just so that they could afford things for her, and their sacrifices and hard work has never been forgotten. Passionate, competitive, and a bit of a perfectionist, Angelia excelled in dance and began performing with a dance team all over the city. No matter how tough the schedules her parents had they always made it to her recitals and performances. Even more, they always expressed just how proud they were of her..

When Angelia was 15 there was an incident at the hotel resort and her father ended up as collateral damage in trying to intervene and deescalate a terrible situation. The sudden loss was devastating to that small, close-knit family. Angelia and her mother ended up moving not long following her father’s funeral to Wilmington, North Carolina where her mother had obtained a job transfer. There was a lot to work through when it came to immigration, but seeing as Angelia’s aunt and her mother’s sister had made the move some near 10 years earlier she helped the grieving pair through the process. The loss had tormented Angelia’s mother so much that home didn’t feel like home anymore. Without her father her mother couldn’t stay in Lima and be reminded of him everywhere. Plus, she needed to be close to her sister.

For the teenager the move was difficult. Not just because of losing her father but also due to transitioning to an American school system where her strong Peruvian accent proved to be a challenge. Angelia had always been fluent in English, she’d been raised speaking both languages, but Spanish had always been the preferred and most spoken in her household. Too often, out of habit, she would slip into Spanish when speaking. Angelia struggled in school but that led her to discover an unknown talent— she could draw and draw quite well. She began filling up notebooks of sketches and doodles, at first not really thinking anything of it, until she came across an ad placed by a local publishing company. They were looking for a book cover artist. Out of curiosity Angelia applied and interviewed, showing her notebooks full of her abilities. They tested her, gave her a book synopsis and a note from an author and told her to return it in a week with mock covers. Angelia blew the executives away with her creations and she was hired immediately. They loved her interpretations but the job didn’t pay the best and the then 20 year old had to take up work at a local bar as a waitress and then eventually a bartender.

It was tough juggling everything at times, especially since she also liked to travel and see a bit of the world, but Angelia actually really loved her life. She loved being an artist and loved the social aspect of working in a bar. Eventually her talents would be snagged by a bigger publishing house and a much better paycheck would come her way because of it. At that time Angelia came upon yet another job opportunity on a whim. Audiobooks were on the rise and the publishing firm had just begun devotinga department to that medium. After overhearing talk of needing narrators and voice actors she offered herself up despite having zero experience. How hard could it be narrating a book?

It turned out to be very tough and required a lot of patience and skill. But, like everything else, Angelia was determined to become good at it. Now, she’s sought out by authors by name. For two reasons.

#wnc.intro #introduction. #biography. #character study.

[arthurhwalker]

Lenovo Yoga Book 9i Review

The hype for this device is warranted. That said, some of the features are incomplete, or "coming soon." There's a lot of really great reviews of the device that talk specifications. In short, the specs are great. This review is going to about how the device fits into my own use case, and the features that mattered to me most.

Yep. I'm going to make it all about me.

Text Entry

Being able to use two screens in landscape, one above the other, or side by side in portrait mode is a show stopper. It's really difficult to have that set up, and have it fit comfortably in your daily carry bag. Being able to set a document window to cascade between both screens in stacked landscape mode is done by tapping five fingers on the screen. It's so good.

Also, it comes with a Mystery Triangle. No idea what it's for, but it is magnetic and has instructions on it for assembly. I found at least one thing it can do, but probably isn't intended for.

Pen holder?

Pictured below: 65w Charger, Lenovo 2-channel quiet Bluetooth mouse, keyboard accessory, stylus, and Mystery Triangle.

The Bluetooth keyboard accessory is excellent. Best of all, the keyboard is included. Literally, the best travel sized/weight Bluetooth Keyboard accessory I've seen is just quietly bundled with the Lenovo 9i.

Key travel, latency (I type very fast if I want to), and feedback are great. I know the device is designed to take pen input, but I love making text with it. They way the keyboard rolls up into the stand to protect the keys from havoc while traveling in my bag is really nice. A lot of thought went into the accessories for the Yoga Book 9i.

The effort paid off.

Pen Entry

You make some sacrifices here, but I'm not convinced it is Lenovo's fault. Being able to draw on the deck display while using the lid display to view your reference material is awesome. Pen input is pretty good, but I'm still wrestling with getting tilt and other functionality to work as I'd prefer. It doesn't seem to matter which application I use, there is a little jitter.

The device will take pen input on both screens simultaneously but that experience is heavily dependent on the applications, and what pen protocol they are using. Overall I'll be doing my finishing work at 300 dpi at home on my Thinkpad with a Wacom Cintiq. Will I do front end digital art, pixel art, and sketching on my Yoga Book 9i?

For sure.

It's an 8.5 stars drawing experience that feels like a 10 because the displays are both OLED, and vary closely matched in both color and brightness. I haven't applied any film to the deck, but the included stylus has pretty good resistance without it. My other favorite stylus works great, too.

User Experience

Microsoft's software products have been in steady decline for over a decade. I didn't think Microsoft had anything left to ruin after Windows 10, but they broke new ground with Windows 11. User experience isn't anywhere on Microsoft's list of priorities these days, and anything Windows 11 does well feels accidental.

Fortunately, Lenovo goes all out to smooth things over wherever they can. They have software running that helps curate the experience for the user. In some cases it does better than put lipstick on the pig that is Windows 11. With screen gestures and touch input particularly, I forget the pig exists.

There are many "coming soon" features that promise to make the experience great, utilizing both displays for function and neat visual aesthetics. If Lenovo does all they've promised with regard to features, the user experience would go from good, to great.

The bad news is that the display scaling is kinda stuck at 200%. You can change it, but you have to change it for each display, every time you log in. When you turn your computer on in the morning to get started working, you'll be changing the scaling, if you don't like it at 200%

For me, the 200% scaling is perfect, and I imagine it will be a for a lot of people. If that is not ideal, it becomes an arduous daily chore to open the display settings, and change the scaling to the desired amount. It is likely that Lenovo will fix this with an update.

If you're having this issue, head to Lenovo's Forums and hit this post. It has some work arounds, but also reply in line. Bump it up. Thanks.

I'll update this review if I find a silver bullet or if Lenovo issues and update that fixes the issue.

Darkness

During the Pandemic my spouse was ill (not with COVID, something else). Being able to sit next to her in the dark, and continue my work without disturbing her was pretty important. At the time I had an Thinkpad X1 Carbon that I had Lenovo's power management settings on it. With the screen brightness bottomed out, and the machine set to run quiet as I could get it, I was able to continue working.

After my spouse's recent surgery, I found myself in a similar situation. She basically needed to sleep for a month to heal, and I needed to be able to watch over her, and continue my work.

Using the Yoga Book 9i in a dark room to make text is great. With the backlighting turned down to nothing, the software keyboard (Lenovo's, not you Microsoft) is perfect. It can be set to give feedback, and a little noise, or nothing at all. The OLED displays turned all the way down are perfect for viewing text, without adding enough illumination to a room to disturb a sleeper.

It's also really cool looking in the dark. Perfect for writing science fiction.

My ears ring constantly after having COVID, and now I'm pretty sensitive to coil whine from devices. The Yoga Book 9i is almost as quiet as a fanless ARM SOC. Almost.

Sound

The Lenovo Yoga Book 9i can be really quiet, but it can also be really loud. If you were using it to run Dungeons & Dragons at a venue, and needed something to play music and sound effects, this device has the best sound on a portable device I've heard. I have one other Lenovo Yoga with a sound bar hinge from a couple years back. The sound on it is really good, but nothing like the Yoga Book 9i.

You can take the Bluetooth speaker out your bag if you're carrying one.

That said, make sure you fully update all the sound drivers. My Yoga Book 9i came with a lot of crackle pop out of the box. Once I updated all the drivers, the sound was perfect. I didn't need to touch a thing.

You will absolutely annoy other people at the coffee shop while watching cat videos on YouTube.

Mobile Workspace

I've been carrying a Thinkpad X12 Detachable Tablet, a Thinkvision M14 portable display, Lenovo Pen Stylus, and Lenovo Bluetooth Mouse as my standard portable workspace. It sets up nicely on a coffee shop table, and let me do my things while I'm traveling.

It's a really nice set up, fits well in my bag.

The Lenovo Yoga Book 9i does the same thing without all the hunting for accessories. Everything you need comes with it. Also, you aren't stuck with two landscape displays stuck side by side, or with extra stands to make your preferred viewing experience work.

It also takes up less space on the table, and I don't have to bring another keyboard as a sidecar to render digital artwork with the pen.

I haven't run into battery life issues with the Yoga Book 9i. I really expected to find myself searching for an outlet more often, but it hasn't been a thing. I assumed the magnetic stand and keyboard accessories would mess with it my bag, and I'd find the device running fans and being crazy in standby mode. Nope, it's been fine.

If it sounds like my expectations were low in terms of the hardware, it is because they were. I was pretty sure I'd buy one, review it, and return it. I'm keeping mine, and riding out the bumps as Lenovo updates and completes software features. I think it'll be worth the wait.

Accessories

All that's missing is the perfect bag or sleeve for the Yoga Book 9i. I'm using a Waterfield Designs Sutter Tech Sling right now, and it is pretty ideal. I have a number of Lenovo's other two-compartment cases that worth pretty well, but nothing that is "the one."

Other than that, carry an extra big microfiber cloth. With three Thunderbolt 4 ports I haven't found the need for dongles or docks unless I'm at home.

Bundled Software

Lenovo ships this device with a Smart Note and Journal application. You can take a Smart Note on the Lock Screen, save Bookmarks, and there is a Smart Reader app in the works. I usually dismiss bundled software, but Lenovo gave these apps some great features.

I might not use Journal, but I will be using Smart Note.

Branding

I've owned or laid hands on every version of Lenovo's Yoga Book devices over the years. My Yoga Book Gen 1.5 (Ruby Red) and Yoga Book C930 still get used, because they are that good. I've had the Android version of the Gen 1, Windows Version of the Gen 1, and used the LTE (Eurozone) Yoga Book C930.

Is the Yoga Book 9i a "Yoga Book" as Lenovo has defined them? Yes, and no.

The Yoga Book 9i is not a 10" ultraportable that defies the traditional categories of clamshell vs. tablet / detachable device. It is a 13" clamshell laptop that comes with the best wireless keyboard and mouse offerings, and the second best stylus Lenovo offers. The stand accessory that bundles everything up is awesome.

It does not fit in my vertical computer bag designed for 10" - 12" form factor devices. It would be unwieldy to hold like a book, in hand, and read text from the displays.

It does provide a computing experience you can't get anywhere else. Lisa Gade didn't even try to explain this in her review. You'll either look at this device and wonder who it's for, or know instantly that you need one for your use case. Like other Yoga Books of the past, there is nothing to compare the 9i to.

There are other dual-screen devices, but they don't compete with the Yoga Book in my opinion. They are not necessarily better or worse, they just don't provide the same experience.

Have a question?

Find me on most social media platforms, @ArthurHWalker

Pictured Below: One use of the Mystery Triangle?

#lenovo #yogabook9i #techreview #workflow #indiedev #writer #digitalart #Youtube

[chanoyu-to-wa]

An Addendum to an Earlier Post; and Some More General Thoughts on the Contents of Book Seven of the Nampō Roku (3/2).

Dear Followers and Readers,

     I have resumed work on the next post (which is very long -- perhaps the longest in this entire series of translations), and believe I will be able to have it ready by Sunday.

     Meanwhile, it occurred to me that there was a point that should have been made during the discussion that spanned entries 50 and 51 (where the seven-kane system was being used for certain arrangements in the kyōma), namely how the seven-kane system corresponds to the eleven-kane system.  In answer to which I created the following as an appendix (which I attached to the end of entry 51):

◎ One thing that is not really mentioned in any of these texts is the way the seven-kane system corresponds to the eleven-kane system on the kyōma utensil mat.  The following sketch shows the seven kane (in black) superimposed onto the eleven-kane system (blue for the yin-kane, red for the yang-kane).

   Notice that only the central (yang) kane, and the middle-most of the three yin-kane on either side of the central kane exactly match up with three of the seven-kane.  This latter point is the reason why these two kane are considered the shōgan-no-kane [賞翫のカネ] when the seven-kane system is used in the kyōma* -- and why the machi-shū preferred to count eleven kane rather than the original five.  (All of the other kane of the seven-kane system are located midway between a yin and a yang kane.)

   The reader is asked to reflect on this carefully, since it will greatly help his understanding. ___________ *The shōgan-no-kane for the five-kane system (eleven-kane system) are indicated with the red notation; the shōgan-no-kane for the seven-kane system have been indicated with black type.

     The post to which this appendix has been attached is Nampō Roku, Book 7 (51):  the Kiri-kami [切紙] of the Fukuro-dana.  The URL for which is:

https://chanoyu-to-wa.tumblr.com/post/709629043338821632/namp%C5%8D-roku-book-7-51-the-kiri-kami-%E5%88%87%E7%B4%99-of

     This is one reason why the eleven-kane system was favored by the machi-shū, over the original five-kane system that was used by Rikyū.

     I hope that the above will further your understanding of the matter of kane-wari, and the use of the seven-kane system in the kyōma.

     Finally, someone was musing about why Book Seven has so many spurious entries in it, and asked me for my thoughts on the matter.  Thinking that over while recovering from my illness, I came to the conclusion that the best answer might be that Tachibana Jitsuzan modeled his Nampō Roku on the Rikyū chanoyu sho [利休茶湯書], which was published in 1580.  After all, it was the opportunity to read through that collection of essays (which I translated, in full, in this blog, just before I started on the Nampō Roku) during a stay in Kyōto (while traveling back to Edo in attendance upon Kuroda Mitsuyuki [黒田光之; 1628 ~ 1707], third daimyō of the Fukuoka domain) that motivated Jitsuzan to ask for permission and a letter of introduction, and then make a side-trip to Sakai after the party arrived in Ōsaka.

     The Rikyū chanoyu sho consists of six books, and the first six books of the Nampō Roku roughly parallel their contents -- so it seems that Jitsuzan was intending to produce a collection similar to the Rikyū chanoyu sho out of the cache of documents that he found in the Shū-un-an. 

     While the editors of that earlier work seem to have been very conscientious about including only things that had a high probability of being connected with Rikyū’s actual teachings -- the Rikyū chanoyu sho includes the text of Rikyū’s Nambō-ate no densho [南坊宛の傳書] as its centerpiece -- as well as details that would appeal to the tea public of that day, Jitsuzan apparently took what he found (he had to copy the documents very quickly, since lord Mitsuyuki was waiting for him to rejoin the progress to Edo), often without thinking very critically about the historical accuracy of any of the material.  Of course since it was already almost a full century after Rikyū’s death, and since Jitsuzan had studied (Imai Sōkyū’s) machi-shū style of chanoyu with Sōtan for many years, his perceptions of what was authentic were likely biased at best (his doubts over Sōtan’s teachings only began to arise after studying the Shū-un-an documents).  After compiling the first six books, as parallels to the books of the Rikyū chanoyu sho (using the material that looked more compelling), Jitsuzan apparently decided to include some other documents that, while more dubious (in his opinion), seemed to touch on teachings and ideas that he felt were worth preserving (apparently he either intended to keep the collection secret all along, or else decided to do so once the manuscript was nearing completion -- perhaps publishers were reluctant to handle a work that was in many respects arcane, and so would have been of less interest to the tea practitioners of that day) in a supernumerary volume.  Jitsuzan seems to have left at least some of the documents untouched (perhaps they had been “checked out” by other people who had been granted access to the box of memoranda, and were not returned during the brief window when Jitsuzan was actually allowed to avail himself of the cache’s contents), so that a subsequent review of the wooden chest by the Enkaku-ji scholars revealed additional material (that was then copied into the two supplements, the Sumibiki no uchinuki-gaki [墨引之内拔書] and its Tsuika [追加]).  That is why many of the entries in Book Seven are so obviously (or sometimes not so clearly) spurious -- which is also true of the two supplements.

     Thank you all for your time.

Sincerely yours,

Daniel M. Burkus <[email protected]>

[misasimagines]

dates the genshin charas would take you on! pt 2

included characters: Albedo, Xiao, Ayato, Scara, Rosaria, Beidou, Ningguang pt 1 has Diluc, Kaeya, Childe, Zhongli, Itto, Thoma rating: sfw warnings: none! gn reader

Albedo: Museum dates, especially a science and industry or art museum are his favorites. He spends a lot of time looking at paintings and sculpture and thinking about the composition and will be happy to tell you about his findings and thoughts. He probably knows a fair bit about the artists and likely even has something to say about the time period in which the art came to be (like how it was affected by the events of the era). In the science museums, even if the displays are geared towards kids and people with less knowledge than him, he finds the interactive things fun. He’ll make the big water tank create different waves and he’s :) about it he’s having a good time. Also suggests botanical gardens and if he’s able to, wants to sketch/paint plenty of pictures of you walking around through the flowers and trees.

Xiao: Prefers to stay at home, order delivery or takeout, and watch something or play video games. He gets to hang out with you in a safe place and that’s preferable to the anxiety of a big crowd at a concert or feeling like he stands out too much walking around a shopping center. If you do want to go out, he’ll agree...but not without his reservations. Like, he’s not going to be comfortable in a crowd, but he’ll be okay in the back of a movie theatre on a weekday. If you bring him somewhere that’s too crowded and then you go off on your own for something, he’s Vanishing he’s Gone he’s disappeared when you make your way back to where you left him. You can find him perched on a fire escape somewhere that doesn’t even have the ladder down how did he get up there???

Ayato: Did you want to be the mc in an indulgent romance novel where the love interest is the mysteriously rich business man because now you are. The restaurants he takes you to have tiny portions and there are about 20 dishes and the waiter tells you that they used smoke from the pipe of a monk who’s been dead 200 years to flavor your caviar. Ayato pretends to take it all seriously, but he’s making comments to you about the ridiculousness of it all whenever the staff is out of earshot. One second he’s saying that he’s had better cake from an Easy Bake his sister had as a kid and the next second he’s commenting on flavors that do not exist to the waiter for Points. He also likes taking you shopping to expensive places and has a habit of picking out things he wants you to wear. Kind of treats you like a doll sometimes,,, but he definitely won’t force you to buy/wear anything you aren’t comfortable with.

Scara: He texts you to come over and bring him whatever he’s craving and then you get there and he’s like :/ well I guess you can stay as long as you don’t bother me- I’m joking...kinda... He’s not the best at dates. Most of what he takes you on is because it’s efficient, he needed to pick up something and the restaurant is right next to the place he needed to do errands at so it’s practical. He was already going to a concert so he can shill out the extra money to let you come with. He’s not the most Thoughtful boyfriend to have and he’s certainly not going to have an easy time asking you go somewhere with him. He’ll drop a comment telling you he’s going somewhere on a certain day and that’s your cue to say you’re interested in going so he can pretend he’s annoyed about you going with him. He likes people watching in places and likes having you there to listen to him making up judgements about people. It’s not always mean-spirited, but he does assume the worst of people a lot.

Rosaria: Bad at planning dates, so most of it happens kind of suddenly, like she shows up at your door at 10pm and asks if you’re free. She’ll take you to places that other people don’t notice, like you’ll end up on the roof of some building watching the stars because there are shooting stars out that night and she wanted a place where you two wouldn’t be bothered. She’ll take you to a little cafe that barely even has a sign to announce it’s existence but you’ll get the best coffee/tea/smoothie you’ve ever had at that tiny little unassuming cafe. She doesn’t love going to places that families go to, like zoos or parks, it makes her a little too melancholy, but if they have nighttime options that are less crowded and/or more geared towards non-family groups, she’ll agree to go. There are also a few staple places you guys go to often where she knows what to expect.

Beidou: She likes to take you to little markets, farmers markets, craft fairs, etc, places where she ends up knowing a lot of the people running stands and knows where a lot of their products come from or developed from. It’s nice to walk around in the middle of a nice spring day and get some homemade snacks and talk to someone about the bees their honey comes from. She also likes walking around marinas and possibly taking you out on smaller boats/sailboats. Beidou can’t pull herself away from the water for long, and there’s something comforting about tossing some little fish flakes into the water for fishies who don’t have any fear for humans. She also likes festivals and is always invited to concerts and shows being performed by friends so you get good seats!

Ningguang: Like Ayato, she likes the finer things in life. She loves taking you shopping and letting you pick out whatever you want. She likes expensive restaurants where they put you two into VIP seating and bring endless expensive drinks and food. She likes going to see the opera and ballets and plays and sitting in her box seats up above it all. But she also has a soft spot for wandering around her community, checking in on smaller business owners, walking through farmers markets and putting her money into the hands of those who help her community thrive. She can’t not stand out because of status and, well, she’s gorgeous, but plenty of the people she visits regularly are comfortable enough with her to treat her more familiarly. And that’s when you get to see a softer side of Ningguang you didn’t know existed, when she’s sitting in a little family owned bookstore and the owner’s kids are excitedly telling her about what happened at school the other day and she’s smiling softly at them and just listening.

#genshin #genshin impact #genshin headcanons #genshin x reader #albedo #albedo genshin #albedo fluff #genshin fluff #albedo x reader #xiao #xiao genshin #xiao fluff #xiao x reader #ayato x reader #ayato fluff #ayato #ayato genshin #scara #scaramouche #scara genshin #scaramouche genshin #scara x reader #scaramouche x reader #scara fluff #scaramouche fluff #rosaria #rosaria genshin #rosaria x reader #rosaria fluff #beidou

[tjkelsey-kvb217]

Entry 4

'Safe' - 23x8cm, Mixed Media

I enjoy experimenting with SFX makeup and gore. Creating juxtaposition between the horrific gruesome nature of the art and the delicate beautiful parts of the work. This is my second attempt of SFX on a non-skin canvas and I love how it turned out.

Planning this work out I knew that I wanted to create another work with the SFX makeup but use something other than skin for the canvas.

Materials I used were; a piece of wood, pencil, synthetic modeling wax, liquid latex, army paint, eye shadows, dried flowers, fake blood, glue, food colouring, and more fake blood.

After finding the correct wood and devising a plan I sketched the first option.

'Alive' didn't sound right and I wanted the art to be much darker, the text being 'Alive' felt too hopeful. I choose the word 'Safe' afterwards and it felt like the right option.

Next I used synthetic modeling clay to lay down a bumpy base.

Then I carved the word into the clay and slightly deeper, scratching the wood. next was to layer on the liquid latex dabbing and pulling at it to ensure it would dry textured like creepy human skin.

Layering the liquid latex gave the art dimension. Then I used army face paint to make the writing look deeper and darker the 'cuts' this material is good because it's thick, doesn't need to dry like paint and can be blended well.

Next I used eye shadow to create an irritated red look and bruises around the writing and edges of the piece of wood also in the 'cuts' to give more depth.

This should hopefully make the latex skin look more like realistic skin. I then added more army paint and came to the decision to add these dried purple flowers.

Which when dried actually had thorn like leaves and I felt this added more to the juxtaposition of the work blending beauty with pain and gore. These flowers were given to me by my partner and by incorporating them it is almost impossible to see the supposed dark meaning added to the artwork. flowers from a partner with 'blood, gore' and 'cuts' could be interpreted as an artwork bring light to domestic abuse.

I then added the first layer of fake blood which I wasn't sure would work very well. This is a cheaper fake blood I own which dries and cracks off, staining skin. So I used it as a base layer.

The other fake blood I own is a much better quality for makeup on skin it takes ages to dry and looks wet and realistic as fresh blood would. Only problem is that on a non-skin canvas the fake blood doesn't dry almost at all.

So, I created a mixture with glue, food colouring and a little bit of the good quality fake blood in hopes that it would dry but still look wet for display. Always looking like it was freshly carved.

Another part of SFX art that I've discovered is my preferred photography method. Dim room lighting with a camera flash on for the photo. this makes the 'blood' look the most realistic.

Inspiring Artists

Beth Cavener

Cavener explains ‘On the surface, these figures are simply feral and domestic individuals suspended in a moment of tension. Beneath the surface, however, they embody the consequences of human fear, apathy, aggression, and misunderstanding.’ (Cavener, B. 2012) The feral nature of these sculptures are eye catching bringing attention to the detail and effort put into these artworks. Using animals to convey very human experiences allows audiences to take in the art more without judging and dismissing the way people do with human emotions.

'The Question That Devours' - 2012

'In Bocca al Lupo' - 2012

I especially love the works she sculpts that include wolves, but all the animals she sculpt look so realistic! Seeing how real she can create them was inspiration for how I should draw the digital animals.

[dashawfrostart]

This Week In "Time & Again" #12: It's Alive... Alive! Honest! And A Little Sour, And A Bit Sweet!

Guten Fhtagn! It's been... a while again.

(this is just a colourful teaser for you now, because it feels silly to make a post that starts with a wall of text - even though I personally love walls of text. Keep reading and you'll find out why those weird empty rectangles are here! And as I often do: there's an animated GIF in the end of the post!) Lately, life has sucked me into a giant cycle of great and lush eventfulness. Kinda as if I hopped into a funnel and then swirled around a bit. I might even say it was fun (haha, fun funnel 😁 What, not funny?.. Lame?.. Aah, well then). So, below goes a straightforward chronological report on what happened to "Time & Again" during this long looooong period of my blogging hiatus.

2 weeks ago I've actually spent only a few days working on "Time & Again" - much less than anticipated. As I always say, life usually takes away so much time from art!.. 🤣 However, it's always a choice. Because I'm not drawing 24/7; never did, and perhaps never will - because otherwise I'll never go birding, among other things. And birding is love. Birding makes Frosty happy. I wanna see more nuthatches and northern flickers around me, preferably every day, when possible. Too much to ask? Yes! But life is always about setting priorities straight and meticulously balancing the things you love and want to do. Because something always goes first, and something other goes second (third, fourth, etc.). So that is what I'm trying my best to do here.

But that was only half of the problem. The other half of the problem was about my futile endeavour to relight the creative spark that was seemingly extinguished over the course of the previous 2 weeks - perhaps due to the reasons mentioned above in this post. I'm always very hesitant to take breaks as I work on my projects, because it breaks immersion - and getting back into the mood again might pose a serious challenge. That is exactly how some of my novels/stories failed to see the light of day in the past. Now, since the work on Chapter 5 is nearing to its end - yes, it's almost done!!! - it's just very disappointing to slow down and having to look for the spilt marbles on the floor (however, Lothar, personally, will definitely benefit from at least TRYING to find his own marbles 🤦‍♀️ dear goodness, that man is indomitable). The work still went well, but without excitement I previously had. And I perpetually have serious problems trying to figure out a personal cure for the "lack of spark" issue: not even once in my entire life have I found a resolution that works wonders like a panacea for me in situations like that.

That said, with all of the distractions and not-exactly-creative events with myself in the epicentre, I managed to keep my word and created a Krita forum thread featuring majority of WIP screenshots from Chapter 5, which you can view following that link. Now, my only objective in this regard is to keep updating it 😁 (what I'm kinda failing at recently)

While not being exactly productive with "Time & Again" - that is only up until this week (read ahead) - in the meantime I have reconsidered a couple things that are related to the artistic part of my existence. One of the decisions was to take down the links to my DeviantArt account sometime after this post goes life. The reasoning behind that decision is as simple as an egg: because I don't post anything on DeviantArt anymore. And I keep forgetting to do it anyway. And I keep forgetting simply because it doesn't really matter. In the recent years I perceived DeviantArt to be nothing but a sort of a personal sketch/art dump simply for the sake of gaining more exposure [not really - read an UPD note ahead]. Let's be honest here: DeviantArt is not a good place anymore. It used to be awesome in 2008-2010 or around - for me anyway. But nowadays... Not so much. I don't think I want to delete it yet, for I still want to pop up, perhaps, once or twice a year and dump all the new artworks in there for the future archival purposes - and in case if somebody might be still interested. But for now, I view my DA account as an almost completely dormant collection of trash masterpieces of yore. So I will stop promoting it for the reason of it being obsolete like the morning dew beneath your feet in its current state. (holy effing smokies, that song was very difficult to find to provide a link to! 😱) [UPD 2024/03/12]: my aim with this was originally a bit off - which I realized only now. Aside from it being a random artworks dump, my decision to keep my DeviantArt account alive was precisely for linking back to it: meaning, I was thinking about uploading artworks on there in order to specifically use them in my posts and on the websites. So, yes, it is a relatively dormant collection, but also a convenient stash of art things to utilize elsewhere (thank you, id Software, for teaching me this word! 🤣). I'll see if that really works out in the future tho.

There's also something else that I don't to reveal just yet, and I'll keep it a secret for now 😉 I must try something before I jump to conclusions.

HOWEVER!.. This last week has changed the tides considerably, in my favour. Again, having only a very hypothetical and a rather unclear clue on why that happened - what, I must admit, mesmerizes and puzzles me to a great extent - that long-longed-for spark I thought I had lost along the way somehow magically returned back to me after I spent a few hours (and 2 days in total) of writing an arch-important "Notes & Commentary" section for the reissue of all the previous "Time & Again" chapters that is nigh (here, I teased ya. Now live with it 😎🤣). I really like "Time & Again". Even while it's still incomplete. Even if Lothar is just a stubborn a**. Even if a certain other character has quite funky fetishes. Even if Jeanny is perhaps dealing with her own little pinky demons. I really like "Time & Again", and I really enjoy its style, so revisiting the whole thing for the sake of writing additional materials for it quite possibly worked in a positive way on my spark. I love you, my spark. Let's keep it this way for as long as we can from now on. So now the work goes quite well, and I feel very good about it. There's still something troublesome that needs to be dealt with... but that'd be a painful tale for yet another post.

And, of course, I experimented with some Krita stuff again - for it seems, Chapter 5 really marks a period of great technical discoveries for me.

For example, finally, after all these years 😅🤣, I learnt and made a very good use of the toggle "All Layers" and "Current Layer" settings of Contiguous Selection Tool (that'd be your Magic Wand tool, ya Photoshoppers around - including my past self). That helped me to speed up flood fill of the certain areas. Speaking of flood fill and all, I experimented more with the "smart fill" as well. In the previous post, I was dreaming about an advanced AI algorithm to automatically recognize and colour the characters according to a user-prepared colour pallete. I might be exaggerating a bit, but flood-filling flat colours on every page felt almost stupefying - and, in short, not fun. I've read a little about the potentials to automate the process in Krita and have discovered a few neat tricks that I might use to speed up the process of colouring of the next Chapter. But right now - that's a story for another day in the future. And at last, let's talk about the backgrounds. I find it that the backgrounds that are just, let's say, "placeholders" and don't contain the surroundings of the characters are sometimes challenging. And in Chapter 5, there's gonna be plenty of those - because oh boy do I love long conversations! (strong self-awareness and self-mockery go here) And most of these conversations don't even require detailed environments for the backgrounds! Because people are just friggin' talking! And their surroundings don't matter on those particular panels. I've looked through quite a few graphic novels and comics at the local book store to get extra inspirations - but very often I see that the artists simply fill the panel with a solid colour. Completely flat. I must admit, I'm deeply hesitant to do the same, because I like at least a little texture on storywise-insignificant solid colours. It gives... depth.

So this is what I've been doing so far (and yes, you guessed it now! the picture in the very beginning of this post is very relevant here!):

While the "flat solid colour" on the background just seems... too flat, I decided to utilize a gentle gradient as a base, and then to apply additional brush strokes on a separate layer with special blending mode in order to create the effect of imperfection and ever so slightly visible texture to it. After a few sessions of trial and error, and thinking about how it feels and if it matches the mood of the chapter, I ended up using a couple of watercolour and splatter brushes together, in black, and the layer blending mode that I figured worked best for me was Soft Light (SVG). As illustrated by the following GIF:

And LAST (but as usual: not the least, but I won't cover "the least" in this current post for now, for the post is already a fatso - typical, innit?!), I've learnt how to use Filter Layers for the quick colour correction on the go. And this might be extremely useful in a long run for the future chapters of "Time & Again". I might cover this in one of my next posts.

That should be enough for now. So let's summarize: I most certainly did NOT disappear because "Time & Again" ceased to exist, or because I've been abducted by aliens, or because I got carried away giving belly rubs to pinky demons, or anything alike. I disappeared BECAUSE I was working hard on my story, even though at times it didn't go as smooth as I wanted to 😉.

Well, folks, let's wrap it up for today, and see you next time in another blog post! Take care! You will see Lothar in action again soon enuff! 👋

#TimeAndAgainbyDWF #This Week In Time And Again #graphic novel #krita

[ablackburnarts102-02]

Process Blog Three

Reading Responses:

Chapter Six of the textbook reading (Becoming a Graphic and Digital Designer: A Guide to Careers in Design, by Steven Heller, pages 120-137) is about designing book interiors and book covers / book jackets. It was quite interesting to read this chapter, as the designs were phenomenal, and it brought my attention to designing book interiors which I had never really considered much before. While I understood that book interiors and layout had to be designed, I didn't realize that there were designers who devoted their entire careers to the typography and flow of the fairly simple seeming pages of books.

Chapter Seven of the textbook reading (pages 138-147) is about editorial design such as magazines and newspapers. Personally I think I would prefer designing magazines over newspapers, as I already have a little bit of experience designing a magazine layout for my high school art magazine. However, I feel like designing a newspaper would allow for the designer to focus more on the layout and the flow of the design rather than worrying about how to fit in all the images with their variation in sizes and style.

Chapter Eight of the textbook reading (pages 148-155) is about social innovation through design. Using design as a tool for social innovation is incredibly meaningful and important, however I can't really see myself going out of my way to pursue it in a career or without someone prompting me to pursue it.

Chapter Nine of the textbook reading (pages 156-161) is about branding and packaging. I also have slight experience with branding and packaging, as I had a number of assignments previously with rebranding certain companies and designing product packaging as well. I feel as though I fit better with designing products and branding rather than product packaging as I have slightly less experience with packing. However, I could completely see myself focusing on these in my design career and I would be thrilled to design product packaging and branding for my own company.

Chapter Ten of the textbook reading (pages 162-184) is about illustration design. While illustration design is beautiful and I love to look at it, I am not particularly interested in making illustration design myself. When it comes more to creating visuals in this sort of way, I would prefer to draw or paint in a way that focuses less on how to 'design' it.

Reflection:

The class project that our class has been working on since the last progress post is our Great Ideas Poster. I started off with a quote that I liked by Marcus Aurelius where he said "The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts." I chose this quote because I thought that it would pair perfectly with some really colorful imagery, which I thought would be really nice and fun for a poster design.

Then I refined these designed on my iPad in Procreate and created three refined sketch images.

I had a lot of fun playing with the colors and looks of all three images, but the third image was my favorite conceptually as I really liked the simplistic and less messy look as I had become very used to the messy look while designing the first two. I did however LOVE playing with the text and color gradients in the first image.

I then began to create the shapes of the third image in Adobe Illustrator for my final poster.

Once I had the shapes the way I wanted, I brought them into photoshop to play with the layer options as well as to add in the text. After that, I brought it back into procreate to add some colors and character back to the image that I lost when I chose the simple design over the chaotic ones in the refined sketch process.

[hekate1308]

Leaves That Before The Wild Hurricane Fly, A Destiel Advent Calendar, December 18

Masterpost

Read it on AO3

Castiel quickly realized that he preferred staying in Dean’s shop to anything else, and not just for the obvious. No, he very much enjoyed helping with the flowers, chatting to those who dropped by…

And writing.

And he wasn’t just talking about his article, even though he was making good progress on that as well.

No, about the third or fourth time he had spent the day here, he had taken his laptop and for the first time in so very long – he had begun writing a short story.

And if one of the heroes was a rather dashing Fae, no one but him had to know, at least not for now.

Dean encouraged him without a fail, telling him “You look so happy when you’re writing, Cas, really.”

He couldn’t very well tell him that his presence had quite a bit to do with that, too, so he had simply thanked him and continued typing.

Bridget had been delighted to find that he wanted to be a writer. “Everyone always says there’s so many of them around these days, but that’s not true. Not when you go after actual talent and passion. Seems like you’ve got both.”

“She hasn’t even read a single line from me yet” he said after she had left.

“Doesn’t matter, Bridget‘s got good instincts. That’s why she moved here in the first place, if you ask me.”

He didn’t quite know whether to agree with Dean there or not, but he didn’t have much of a chance to reply anyway, since another customer presented themselves and at the same time, Crowley showed up and of course promptly glanced at what he as writing.

“Hm, let me guess, “Michael” is going to carry “Raziel” into happily ever after in his strong manly arms?”

“It’s a work in progress”.

“I can tell” he said, glancing at Dean and then at Castiel in a very suggestive manner. He chose to ignore it.

“Anyway, so how’s the article going?”

“Well, thank you.” He didn’t tell him about Raphael; so far he hadn’t mentioned it, although he knew he would have to very soon. If his boss expected a piece that disparaged the community, not only would he not have fulfilled his agreement with Dean, there was no saying for what he could lose. For it was not just Dean – he loved the group, loved the feeling of belonging somewhere and, more importantly, top something.

But if Raphael got his will…

He reminded himself that he didn’t know yet what would happen.

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

He clearly was more preoccupied than he had imagined, because suddenly, one of the small stuffed snow men Dean had littered amongst the plants bounced off his nose. He was startled.

Dean laughed. “Sorry, man, you just looked way too cute frowning at your story like that. Are you stuck?”

He shook his head. “Dean, there’s something I would like to talk to you about.”

“Of course.” When he realized he was being serious – or more serious than usual, at any rate – he said “Give me a moment” and went to lock the door and hang up the sign to let people know that he would be back in five minutes, aka that he was taking a break. “So what’s wrong, Cas?” he asked, sitting down next to him.

He took a deep breath and began.

When he was done, Dean shook his head. “And you’re sure?”

“With Raphael, you can never be sure with anything, but I am certain that he is –“ he searched for a diplomatic version of what hew as trying to say, but of course Dean, probably because he was used to talking to Crowley had no such qualms.

“A stone-cold son of a bitch?”

He shrugged helplessly.

Dean hummed. “Well then. Best give it to Crowley.” He grabbed his phone to began typing a text. “There’s nothing he can’t find out if he puts his mind to it, and he very much will when it comes to this, trust me.”

He nodded.

“Hey, don’t worry. You let us know, and that is the important thing.”

“I don’t want my article to be heavily edited” he confessed. “It’s happened before just so they could create a media sensation.”

“Well, I will s ay this, a scandal would probably get us an interview on CNN at least” Dean said lightly. “Or at the very least a sketch on SNL”.

“I don’t want you to be made fun of” he then said quietly. “I know what that feels like.”

“Hey” Dean grabbed his hand and squeezed it, and talking became almost impossible. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll figure this out, and then we’ll see from there.”

He tried to smile.

“Really, Cas, we can make it, and we will.”

Despite knowing better, he found himself desperately hoping that Dean didn’t just mean the article.

#my writings #spn #advent calendar #destiel #dean winchester #castiel

[suckitsurveys]

what is your favorite kind of ice cream? Butter pecan because I am 80. I also like cookie dough and things with caramel in it. if people could read your mind, what would they usually find? Oh man they’d get outta there so quick. who do you talk to on the phone most often? I very rarely talk on the phone. what’s a song that makes you feel happy? SO many. what celebrity would you like to meet? Pete Davidson, especially now that he’s single haaaaaaay.

what’s the best concert you’ve ever been to? Billie Eilish back in March. And Lorde in 2018 (i think?) what is your favorite clothing store? Whatever. how did you meet your best friend? Some online and some in school. do you need money to be happy? Yes capitalism makes it that way. what is something you do well? My job. what’s a good idea you’ve had recently? A way to surprise my nieces with a water park trip. what is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Food. how far in advance do you prefer to plan? Depends, but girl I AM A PLANNER. I have lists upon lists and things written out down to the TIME. do you like to wear high heels? No. how many slices of pizza do you usually eat? Depends on the pizza. Can you remember life without technology? what was it like? Yes.

what gift would you like to receive? Money. A new car. A house. Pete Davidson’s phone number. what’s the last thing you paid for? Groceries. what’s the last movie you watched? Big Time Adolescence. do you remember your dreams? Sometimes. do you play any instruments? No. do you always smile for pictures? Sure. what are you most excited about right now? Our Wilderness Trip one week from today! if you had $5 in your pocket what yould you spend it on? Starbucks maybe? how often do you buy things via the internet? Here and there. would you like to live in a different country? if so which one? I mean, because of how fucking in shambles the US is, yes, but because I am used to living here and have based my life here, no. what animal would you see first if you went to the zoo? If they have them, pandas. if you could switch places with someone for a day, who would it be? I’m okay. do you prefer the aisle, middle, or window seat on a plane? Window. what’s your favorite song from a movie? SO many. where would you like to volunteer? Animal shelters. would you rather go out for dinner or cook at home? Takeout. who sent the last text message you received? Lori. what’s your favorite flower? Gardenias. what’s the last song you listened to? This is American by Childish Gambino. do you like being alone? Yes, occasionally. what was the last thing you ate? Spaghetti and meatballs, how do you find new music? Tik Tok lol. what is your dream travel destination? A nice private beach. if you could play any instrument what would it be? Guitar. what’s the last youtube video you watched? Walking in Staten, an SNL sketch/parody song. where are you going on your next trip? The Dells. what are you currently addicted to? Tik Tok unfortunately.

#surveys

[pillow-anime-talk]

dating them.

synopsis: Some sweet, funny and also crazy moments in your relationship.

# tags: headcanons; current relationships; romance; mild comedy; fluff; PDA; sfw

includes: gender neutral reader ft. reki kyan, langa hasegawa, miya chinen, kaoru sakurayashiki & kojirou nanjou {sk8}

author’s note: so... i’m just in love with this anime...

— REKI

↘ He’s such a precious boy who cheers you up in the blink of an eye; I think he has an extra sense, so he knows when you feel worse than usual or when you are in even the slightest pain (for example, you bumped your elbow or you haven’t eaten breakfast before ‘cause you missed your alarm clock and therefore you have a stomachache).

↘ Reki is a supportive lover; whether you are passionate about singing, learning languages, reading manga, sewing mascots or painting, a seventeen-year-old will always be right next to you to praise what you do or the way you look. He will notice every, even stupid detail about you and mention it immediately when you’re going to hang out. He’s definitely your fan and doesn’t hide it. Additionally, if you introduce him to what you love, he will also get interested in it in a way and then he will come to you to show off what he has done like a sketch of the two of you or an opinion about the anime you recommended him three days ago.

↘ The boy is really devoted to you and loves physical contact; grabbing a hand, kissing on the cheek or forehead, cute texts in the morning it’s something totally normal for the two of you. I also think that Reki could melt if you run your fingers through his soft hair or make small braids for him, decorating his head with a few colored hairpins or hairbands.

↘ If you know how to skateboarding, he will be delighted and your dates will mostly be about riding together or learning new tricks. Plus, it’s another thing Reki loves about you and wow. He’s even bigger fanboy than before!

↘ However, if you have never ridden or even tried to do it, it doesn’t matter. A teen will be happy to be able to offer you some private lessons if you wish. Again, red-haired adores physical contact, so holding your hands/waist while you stand on his beloved skateboard will be a dream come true for him.

↘ He always has ticket for you, so you make a new banner for each race to support him. Hit me, but I’m 120% sure that after race (whether he won or lost it) he takes your pretty banners and hides them in this special box that has its place on his bedroom closet.

↘ Overall, Reki is a boy who fits to the definition of high school, first love.

— LANGA

↘ Your relationship is a bit more peaceful, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a bit of humor or abstraction.

↘ Langa loves your company so, so, so badly; Reki is quite hot-tempered and is literally everywhere, so when the two of you hang out together after school or at the weekend, blue-haired feels that he can breathe and relax every muscle in his body. You’re his comfort person, and your room is a safe place without fear and noise.

↘ He also enjoys physical contact, but much more prefers to show affection in private, for example in your home or in his own bedroom.

↘ His favorite type of PDA is cuddling; he prefers to be a big spoon and hug you from behind, but he has no problem hugging against your chest or warm stomach, especially when he feels down because of school or racing.

↘ I have a strange feeling that Langa is the type of romantic who would make an amazing Spotify playlist for the two of you so you could listen to the songs, cuddling each other in the bed.

↘ If you can skateboard that’s great! For sure you, Langa and Reki will be a good trio that will meet often in the skate park or in ‘S’. I’m also pretty sure he’ll cheer for you, but at the same time he’ll be very cute with it and definitely more calm than his bestie. For example, if you do a trick... you’ll get a quick kiss on the nose or Langa will buy you your favorite drink. He definitely likes to pamper you.

↘ If you don’t know how to skateboard but you really want to start skateboarding to share your lover’s passion... Well, he will definitely give you a short (long) monologue about how dangerous it is, and you need to be careful – because he knows best of all how a fall on butt or face hurts.

↘ He always keeps a tiny set of colored plasters in his jacket or pants pocket to take care of you in the case of an unexpected accident, as Reki used to care for him.

↘ He’s a good teacher, but he will definitely need to calm his emotions, because sometimes instead of showing you how to slide down the railing, he will suggest something more down-to-earth, like going to the cinema to watch the movie you mentioned three days ago.

— MIYA

↘ Ahh, my precious smol baby.

↘ You are Miya’s first partner, so he still thinks that he’s not good enough for you, although you always reassure him with a light peck on the nose that he’s the best thing that has happened to you and that you’re very glad that you can be with him in every good and bad moment.

↘ The teenager is terribly shy about any physical contact outside, so if you aren’t at home, don’t expect a ton of hugs or kisses from him. He much prefers when you two are alone – then he doesn’t feel overwhelmed by the gazes of other people, especially other skaters who like to make fun of him. 

↘ I swear I’ll bite and beat them all...

↘ Miya is a delicate soul and he really likes to feel that someone look after him, so in a relationship he definitely prefers when you cares for him. For example; just touch his soft hair, ask about his well-being or when he will have a race and a huge smile will appear on his face.

↘ I think if he feels that you are the only one for him... Maybe he will lend you his favorite hoodie with cat ears and tail? He’ll be overjoyed to see that you feel good in it. You look extremely cute, but he’ll never admit it. 

↘ It smells like him, like wet earth and a hint of sweet perfume, and although it’s a strange combination, it feels really beautiful, downright safe and homey.

↘ For the next holiday (your birthday, your anniversary, Valentine’s Day or Christmas), he will give you a sweatshirt that matches to his own. It will be in your favorite color and will also have an animal accessory, not necessarily catish, because if you prefer dogs, rabbits or cows... You know, there are many options.

↘ If you know how to skateboard, he will be really calm and will feel that finally someone will want to spend time with him, training and riding together; not like in childhood when everyone turned away from him. He will definitely be moved when you grab his smooth hand and offer a long ride in the park. He definitely loves praise, so give him praise every now and then when he does a nice trick. He will also compliment you more than once and even give you a kiss on the cheek (of course if nobody is watching!). He’s not good at words, but he tries!

↘ If you don’t know how to skateboard... He may be a bit skeptical, but naturally he’ll agree to a few lessons in front of your or his house. Of course you originally just wanted to be close to him and hold his hand more often than usual, but it turned out to be pretty fun! Now, training is your typical dates.

↘ Miya is a sweet boy and although he may not look like that, he’s really protective, often jealous and always puts you at first place.

— KAORU

↘ This beautiful man, this angel-looking ideal, this ahhhh... Being in a relationship with him is pure pleasure and daily healing for the soul.

↘ He’s a calm, understanding and loving partner. I think he’s a bit old fashioned but that only adds much more charm to his person.

↘ He often calls you his ‘dearest’, ‘darling’ or ‘sweetheart’, isn’t that cute?

↘ You two don’t go out on dates too often, but I think Kaoru loves to spend time at home, having tea or on the couch while one of you is reading a book and the other is listening to music or just sleeping. He definitely doesn’t look like that, but he loves PDA/cuddling and is the best at it!

↘ He also likes it when you suggest learning calligraphy together. He never forced you to do this, but when he first heard that you would like to meet one of his passions, he was really happy and immediately showed you how to write with ink on the special paper he had in his flat. Obviously, more than once you ask him to write a simple letter or word, because you just love his handwriting and how focused he seems. He’s really hot then, I swear to god!

↘ You love his long hair and are always eager to give him a new, nice hairstyle; normal braid or fishtail braid. Maybe a bun or a ponytail with a few hairpins? He loves everything you do on him. In addition, the gentle head massage you give him each time is the most soothing thing in the world for him.

↘ If you know how to skating... He’s really surprised, but that doesn’t mean he’s unhappy or angry. He wants to see what you can do right away and you will surely feel a sweet kiss on your forehead more than once when the trick will be good or even better than you both thought. He’s a supportive boy, but doesn’t show it as vehemently as Reki, for example; he prefers to smile at you or clap softly.

↘ If you don’t know how to skate yet, but you asked him to teach you how to even stand on it... I imagine Kaoru going pale and trying to distract you from this idea because, as an experienced skater, he’s afraid that you will hurt yourself like any beginner. But your big eyes and ruddy cheeks are his weaknesses, so he’ll trust both you and Carla and help you keep your balance on his beloved, black-violet board. Reward him later with quick kisses or give him his favorites, okay?

↘ To sum up, Kaoru is a good and honest lover. He definitely loves your company and won’t mind spending his free time seriously and frivolously with you.

— KOJIROU

↘ This guy is the definition of the sentence ‘Through the stomach to the heart’. Any objections? No. So let’s gooooo!

↘ Kojirou is a PERFECT second half. Both in character and appearance. If he fall in love with someone seriously, and it will be you, then know that he’ll care for you like about a member of the royal family; breakfasts in bed, an Italian supper, the perfect choice of wine for a chicken or steak are things that have become a sweet daily thing for you at some point.

↘ He loves to show you affection and absolutely has no problem doing it in public, even when he’s working or when you two are in a tight crowd on the train or in the ‘S’ before his race. He will kiss you hard on the lips, grab your skin on your butt or hug your waist. It’s just that everyone needs to know that you belong to him. He’s just as clingy as Reki, and sometimes even worse and bolder.

↘ Of course he has cute side; he likes to lie on the bed or the sofa with you on his chest. He loves being between your thighs and sleep there. He definitely has a weak point in that when you you run your finger on his tattoo or cook dinner with him, throwing ingredients at him and laughing out loud.

↘ Another romantic who uses thousands of pet names (like babey, cutie, doll, pumpkin, kitten). Plus, he loves to dance with you in the kitchen and steal a few kisses here and there. Also, if you aren’t looking, he likes to surprise you with a big, bear hug.

↘ I think he’s a bit impatient, so he doesn’t like to sit at home and prefers dates in crazy places (such as an amusement park, swimming pool, karaoke bar) – it’s his favorite way of spending your time together. As a gentleman, he always pays for you, unless you go faster and bring your ATM card to the card reader as first. But don’t be surprised when Kojirou will just buy you cotton candy or popcorn shortly afterwards.

↘ If you know how to skateboard, he’s as excited as a kid and will definitely offer you a date at the skate park. Naturally, he wants to show off to others what a super cool partner he has, but he also wants others to know that you’re here together to kick everyone’s asses with your abilities. You’re definitely a powerful couple and you have the matching necklaces!

↘ But if you don’t know how to skating then... well, well, well. Just be prepared that one day (without even asking for it) you’ll stand on his beloved board and he will grab your hips, smiling silly. He enjoy skin ship so this guy feels utopian when he can be near you. He definitely won’t spare you compliments, long pecks, and smack your butt when you do something great, so you have to get used to it... and it’s going to be a long training session, so good luck, my friend.

↘ He’s a funny guy, but he’ll never cross your limits, so don’t worry about that. However, he will always find a topic for conversation or a joke to relax the atmosphere or cheer you up. You will never be bored with him.

#— 🍁 #sk8 the infinity #sk8 the infinity headcanons #sk8 the infinity x reader #sk8 #sk8 headcanons #sk8 x reader #sk∞ #sk∞ headcanons #sk∞ x reader #reki kyan #reki kyan headcanons #reki kyan x reader #langa hasegawa #langa hasegawa headcanons #langa hasegawa x reader #miya chinen #miya chinen headcanons #miya chinen x reader #kaoru sakurayashiki #kaoru sakurayashiki headcanons #kaoru sakurayashiki x reader #kojirou nanjou #kojirou nanjou headcanons #kojirou nanjou x reader