#well to be honest he’s the first part of the final boss but hey

[radiance1]

Mechanical eastern dragon.

Danny, ever since he was a wee little lad, about 5 or so. Really liked eastern dragons since he found out about them, so much so that he even tried to make his own little eastern dragons!

When Jack saw that, it seemed to strike something in him and suddenly Danny found himself having a more experienced hand aiding him in his crafts.

Jack started directing him towards something simpler than a dragon when he was first starting out, then over time gradually let him make certain parts of a dragon instead of all at once, then when they were all complete, they stuck them together and Danny? Well, he found out why his dad liked to build so much.

So, he started to build more and more little things, small yet complex that'll eventually come together to form his eastern dragon.

As he got older, and his parents became more and more focused on their portal project, he eventually decided that, hey, why doesn't he just make a giant version of his little crafts?

An actual dragon.

Of course, such a thing was no easy feat, so he started it just like his dad taught him too, little pieces over time that'll eventually come together to make what will essentially be his masterpiece.

However, he lacks the parts to do so.

Well, not exactly considering there's a lot of household things he could take apart for scrap, but his parents are already doing that, plus he wants way better materials that'll really shape this up to be his mastepiece.

So he took to instead drawing out how it'll look, and creating various minor pieces that'll go into powering it and stuff. He took some of the ectoplasmic batteries his parents' didn't have a use for anymore, and kinda just, fused them together?

Either way, he made a core that'll be the basis of power for his dragon when he completes! Of course, it'll have to go over multiple modifications over the years while he refines the design for his dragon, to make it able to hold more energy, more durable and far more powerful.

He won't lie, he was both extremely suspicious and immensely grateful when Sam gave him a diamond of all things to make a battery out of, because she obviously wanted something outta it. What did she want? Dibs on being one of the first too see his creation when its finished.

Very simple, plus she said her parents could buy another one anyways. Ah, the joys of being rich.

Then he heard from his parents about how their portal works, though he wasn't too interested since he was too busy building the skeleton of his dragon from the parts Sam gave him.

Tucker, who was dabbling in coding, decided that he was going to attempt to create a high level AI for Danny's project, which Danny was all for! Great materials provided by his friend, and then his other one wanted to make an AI specifically for his masterpiece?

Why would he ever say no?

Jazz has been acting pretty weird thought lately, he noticed a bit after the day he was made aware of how his parents' portal managed to work, how he still isn't sure, nor did he actually believe there was a realm of the dead but eh. He would admit, he wasn't terribly close with his sister, ever since he started up his master work, and became a fink, but he could tell something was different.

Really only because she seemed to be finally getting off his case about how much work he's putting into his dragon and less into taking care of himself properly, which she usually does by bossing him around. But he thinks she's just busy, and is too busy to even care at this point so it didn't really matter.

He was a bit blindsided by ghosts actually being real but easily accepted it to be honest. Like, he's been using stuff powered by ectoplasm that ghosts are supposedly made of, so it wasn't that much of a stretch.

Of course, a ghost fighting against another ghost was new, different from what his parents had told him, but it was nice to have someone protecting the town other than his parents at the very least.

As he got closer and closer to finishing his masterpiece, and as Tucker himself almost finishing with the AI, his grades weren't receiving that much attention, he would admit. He would look back at them when he completed it, alright? But not now.

Then came a day where he was saved from a ghost attack by Amity Park's hero, and while he was extremely tired, he recognized that bossiness, snobbish attitude and smothering from anywhere. Did he expect his sister to be the ghostly town hero? No, no he did not.

Was he going to tell anyone? Not really, he cared, but he didn't care that much about to go around talking about it. Also, wasn't his place to spill his sister's secret really.

Also, she didn't know he knew, and he planned to keep it that way for the foreseeable future.

Just as he was nearing his completion, only having just a few finishing touches before it was ready for the AI to be uploaded to it, a test popped that he apparently had to study for, with his sister already passing with flying colors (which just proves how much smarter she is than him, because she fights ghosts regularly, he doesn't, doing something much safer and what does he have to show for it?) and urging him to study. Which, with her attitude that got even worse, after becoming half-ghost and a hero, he just, couldn't take.

He's thankful that ghost came when they did, because he just couldn't stand her any longer than that. So he just popped over to Nasty Burger instead, removing himself far as he could from that fight, and of course, of course said fight had to end up there.

The universe just hates him, it seemed. On the plus side, he managed to snag the answer sheet to that C.A.T. test his sister was nagging him about, why would he study if he has this now? Besides, he has something more important to do anyways.

Then a while he's confronted by his sister's apparent alternate evil future self after he dropped his knowledge of her secret in attempts to stave off the conversation of him cheating, which, now that he thought of it, was probably better than finding out and subsequently being knocked out by his sister's alternate self.

Thankfully, when he next awoke, he found his project was perfectly untouched, and then had to leave to take the test. He'll figure out a way to deal with his sister's future self later. While later, he finished the test, and was finally glad to be able to add the last touches to his project.

Oh, right, his sister's evil self. He almost forgot about her if he was being honest. So, he took the Fenton Peeler, and was going to go find his sister before he had to be called to Nasty Burger by his parents and, well, his 'sister' was there, and his cheating was already revealed and decided it's literally whatever and shot her.

Weird that he was separated from everyone else, but it's whatever. Sure, the sauce was going to explode and kill everyone, but he believed in his sister to come and save the day, as she always did and will continue doing and he told his sister's evil self that, and was incredibly smug when it happened.

He watched the fight, cheering a bit from the sidelines because, well, c'mon. It's not everyday he watches his sister beat her future self the up, and he might not get this chance ever again so might as well enjoy it while he can.

Unfortunately, he never accounted for his sister being too weak after said fight to help their parents', Mr. Lancer, and his friends, and then he saw them explode.

Then his sister disappeared.

He, very obviously, did not take this well at all. So, after he got back home, feeling both like shit and nothing at all, he stared at the almost finished eastern dragon sitting to the side of his bedroom/workshop, the only component missing being the AI bead, and promptly broke down crying.

He didn't cry earlier, but he just, couldn't contain himself. His parents were dead, his teacher was dead, and his two only best friends were dead too, and his sister disappeared in front of him and he had no idea where she could be.

He then cried himself to sleep.

Then he woke up, took up the AI bead, and inserted it into the dragon sluggishly.

It's completion was a solemn affair, rather than the bright and happy thing he expected and wanted. No one was around to marvel at his genius, too see the end result of what he tried for years to achieve, and no sister that he could rub it in her face about either.

He had nothing. Nothing but the product created from the combined efforts from him and his friends.

So, what was he to do?

Modify it, of course!

He threw all his attention into it, installing weapons, fiddling around with the core (That he had to take out and put back in) and giving it a lot of ghost shields, and other Fenton tech.

And for what? He doesn't know, but this, giant thing, somehow capable of growing and shrinking to his choosing (he still doesn't know how, even though he made the thing), installed to the brim with Fenton tech, is his.

And he'll use it to find his goddamn sister. Sure, they didn't have the greatest relationship, and sure, she wasn't the best to get along with, but she was the only thing he had left, and whoever took her could pry her from his and his dragon's goddamn hands.

Also, who would he rub his genius in the face of, if he didn't find her?

So, he took off to the zone, got lost, fought a few ghosts with his dragon and Fenton tech, and then ended up in another dimension full of heroes and villains. Did he care about that?

Fuck no.

But apparently, being a 14-year-old and fighting people off with his mechanical dragon was not a normal thing. Sure, he may have overreacted by having said dragon through his aggressors, who were normal humans by the way, through multiple walls, but in his defense.

It was their fault for trying him when he wasn't in the best of moods.

#dc x dp #dp x dc #dp x dc crossover #dpxdc #dcxdp #dc x dp crossover #FINALLY DONE #Anyways #Jazz is completely unaware that the timeline where her parents Mr. Lancer and her brother's friends died still existed #So she's just living it up in the timeline Clockwork sent her too and avoided the explosion lol

[tfyoulookingatgiuxs]

Hello! I’ve read a bit of your stuff and really like it. Could you do a cute secret relationship story with Billy Hargrove x fem reader pls.

Thank you!

• Hmm...why not? It would be interesting. Worth a try! (I'm not a big fan of Billy but I'm happy to be able to satisfy your requests).

Together Forever

Billy Hargrove x Reader

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘: You and Billy have been engaged for more than two years in secret, without the knowledge of the citizens of Hawkins but also without the knowledge of the boy's father. You both want only one thing, to live together. And staying in Hawkins is not part of your plans.

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: Fluff, fem!reader, bad language, use of Y/N, you're surname is Williams, daddy issues, abuse, sigarettes, secret relationship.

𝐀/𝐍: Here it is! This is the first request, I really hope I exceeded @unamused-boss expectations Sorry for my English, this is not my native language. Please support new writers and reblog. Hope you enjoy! (DIVIDER NOT MINE)

In Hawkins the air was cold and this week the forecast said it would bring down the flood. You savored the air which made you smile. You never hated rain or gloomy weather, in fact you found them relaxing and perfect for drinking a nice cup of milk or hot chocolate, as if you were back in winter close to the Christmas period.

You moved some leaves as you crept further towards the house, a classic house and welcoming and tidy on the outside. You were in the garden, but hey, let's calm down, you're not going to rob! But you are looking for the window to the room of Billy Hargrove, your boyfriend. Yes exactly. You Y/N Williams, an ordinary student at Hawkins High, engaged to the big and strong Billy Hargrove! You didn't believe it either, to tell the truth. You were not popular, much less well-regarded by most of your classmates, you were silent and perhaps even mysterious, you were good at school, sure, but you had a temper that perhaps half the students at school envied, and that is precisely what triggered a connection in you and Billy the day you met.

In his eyes you were normal, nothing that Billy cared about, you were just like all the other girls, but he changed his mind as soon as you won a verbal battle with him, leaving him breathless. No one dared to challenge him and especially with such confidence, but you, you were the first girl to do so, and it left the students shocked for at least two weeks. You seemed like sworn enemies, after that spat neither of you tried to annoy the other so as not to start a war, but in reality you realized that in the end you weren't that far apart, in fact you could even say they were quite similar.

You remembered when you and Billy attended Mrs. Davis's classes, which were really boring. The boy wouldn't stop giving you glances and giggling every now and then, only to both get scolded and sent to the principal. The students were tired of this, you were seriously cat and dog! Unbearable! But what people didn't know was that both of you weren't teasing each other to cause anger or annoyance to the other, but it was totally the opposite, they were pure and true digs. At first you didn't notice, you thought it was normal, something for friends. But apparently this was not the case. From secret friends you have become secret lovers.

Wow...

You seriously didn't expect this...you had to be honest about this. After you both got together you saw a side of Billy you never thought you'd seen. From the obnoxious, arrogant, vulgar and popular boy he was, he had finally revealed himself: kind, loving, difficult and sweet.

In short, never judge a book by its cover, right? The same thing apparently goes for people.

But now you're wondering... why in secret? Why were you two secret friends and now secretly engaged?

This was because Billy had a great reputation at school and was afraid of being criticized by others. You felt very sorry for him and you understood it. In Hawkins High, gossip is the fruit of its existence and if there wasn't anyone to criticize or make fun of, what would the students of this fucking school do? Exact. Just nothing. This is why you understood that your school was perhaps the shittiest of all. They would torment not only Billy but you too. You showed such confidence and superiority towards Billy that day and now you are friends? In short, something that cannot be heard!

You have therefore decided to keep the matter in secret so as to be left alone.

As for the relationship, well, both of you were actually ready to no longer hide and face those dick faces, but you immediately backed out when you found out that Billy's father strictly forbade going out with you and doing anything. something more productive in his life. The boy had never told you about his family until that point and when he told you about his father you were horrified by it. His father was a violent and aggressive man, he hurt him while demanding respect from his son who he threatened or even beat if he disobeyed, a father that no one would like to have...

The night you and Billy got ready to go out on a date, he called you and canceled without telling you why. Then when you met and talked about it you became calm again and consoled him. Billy vented and it hurt, you couldn't know what it meant to live in that hell. For your boyfriend, however, it was fine, especially when he met you, for him you were an angel, one of the most beautiful and sweetest girls he had ever seen, for him, you were a divine salvation from his torment, and if he had to suffer all this to stay with you then he would have tolerated it.

Seriously, this guy turned out to be more amazing than you thought.

For his father you were just an adventure, a simple whore with whom Billy would be satisfied and therefore he ordered him to leave you alone and look for something to earn, since Billy recently left school.

In short...a beautiful but complicated relationship.

You arrived in front of his closed window and as soon as you saw his figure from behind while he was lifting some weights through the glass, you knocked and he turned around. He smiled at you showing his docile face and opened the door for you. Most of the time it was you who barged into his room to visit him, unlike him, other than part-time work, you had nothing to do.

“My bad girl barges into my room again, I should start worrying” He said teasingly as he helped you up. You smiled "Nah, you don't need it, I'm used to it by now" you both gave each other a kiss on the lips as a greeting. That afternoon, all members of Billy's family were out: Max was with his friends, Susan was shopping and his father was at work.

"How are you?" You asked as you eyed his weights. It was now a legitimate question to ask every time you saw him training. An outside observer might think he did it to maintain his beautiful physique, true. But he also does it to let off steam...Billy does nothing but lift weights to vent an enormous anger that he is holding back. He smiled sweetly at you "Good darling, don't worry. Training doesn't hurt me" with this the boy winked at you and moved a lock of hair from his face and then placed his palm on your cheek "And what about you? How is my girl?" He smiled one of his own and you couldn't help but giggle, he loved teasing you with these silly nicknames and you couldn't help but blush and flatter yourself.

"Very good, today I received my pay at work and I got an excellent grade in biology!" You said as you ran a hand down his chest. "But didn't you hate biology?" He said as he invited you to sit on his bed. His room was tidier than you remembered it from two years ago. Billy was messy, and let's say he put his things in plain sight, thank goodness that since he got engaged to you he started hiding inappropriate things to make you feel at ease.

You sat on his bed with your back against the beige wall of his room, he stood next to you.

"Yes, it's true, but I wanted to improve myself, I have to be good in all subjects to improve my future" You said taking his hand "Aren't you tired of all that studying?" Billy said taking a cigarette and placing it between his thin lips "To be honest yes, I really fucking can't stand the thought of opening another literature book or something" You laughed at the idea. Despite being a studious girl, you have never loved studying. So many things, so many poems, so many equations and bullshit like that, in short, enough! Too much! "But, you know, I'm doing it to do better in the future, so I'll have more job opportunities" Billy let out smoke from his mouth and you smelled the smell of tobacco in your nostrils "What would you like to do in the future? In short, it seems that you already know what you want to do with your life, sweet girl" he said looking at a fixed point "Actually, no, I don't know, there are many things and I couldn't decide" He seemed surprised by your answer but then it took him a while to answer you.

"Well there aren't many things you can find here in this shitty town, God, I wish I could get out of here" He finally said almost whispering as more smoke spread into the room. This statement of his made you think...

You never really thought about staying in Hawkins, the city, as welcoming as it was, was also a bad place that you really wanted to escape from, you don't like the people, much less the mayor who runs it. Thinking of wanting to move to have other opportunities and change your life seemed like an impossible dream. You looked at Billy and you looked at him "I share your thoughts, if it were up to me I would leave here too, maybe to New York, or I don't know, to Boston, there are many places outside of here where I would like to spend my life. Instead you Billy, where would you go?" He looked back at his fixed point in front of him. He remained silent for a while and then answered you with a smile "California...I would like to go back there" he said it with a note of sadness and your heart melted. You knew how much he wanted to return to California, after all it was one of the most beautiful places for him, because of his precious memories with his mother.

“Maybe then we would go together…” You said resting your head on his shoulder feeling his sweaty skin “Together?” He seemed paralyzed by your proposal and you nodded “That's impossible darling…” he gave a light chuckle but his tone didn't seem joking, it was as if he wished that proposal had come true. "Why do you think it's impossible?" He shook your hand as he placed his cigarette in the nearby ashtray "Because that's how it is. Look at us, I work as a lifeguard and earn little anyway, you on the other hand are still studying, moreover my father wouldn't allow me to go back to California, he says that he hates it and that neither Max nor I should go back, and also because he wouldn't approve of me going with you" True. He wasn't wrong and this made you stay silent for several minutes thinking about how to find a solution.

You knew it was absurd, in short, Billy was now an adult, if he wanted to leave and move somewhere else it wasn't his father's business, but by now the man seemed to have taken control of his life too and this had taken you by surprise. . The father wanted Billy, like Max, to stay close to them so as not to worry Susan, who unlike the man was worried about the two and certainly knowing that one of the two was too far away worried her, so much so that she asked her husband to order both him and Max to stay in Hawkins in the future. But that didn't mean you would have given up.

"You know, in California there are many chances of finding a job and someone like yours earns well there. Then if I managed to graduate here I could very well walk away with the money I earn from part-time work" He smiled "You planned the your life plan?" You looked at him with a grin "our life plan, you are part of my life, Billy" she immediately smiled so much that he blushed but shook his head "No. With me your future will only be turbulent and then as I said before, it's impossible"

"Nothing is impossible Billy. Together if we want we can do it, obviously if you want to do it" you raised your head and he took a deep breath and kissed you. You laughed in the sweet kiss "Of course I want" You smiled again "Only, my father worries me"

“Don't worry about him, I actually already have an idea for this” you smirked evilly as you stroked his golden locks. Billy looked at you for a while to then understand what was going on in your little head "My smart girl" He said as he approached hungry for another kiss, you laughed "Have I always been or am I wrong?" You both gave each other more kisses.

Exactly two more years passed. It was a rainy night. Midnight. The streets of Hawkins were deserted as the rain got heavier and heavier. A wonderful night, especially for the two of you. You had recently graduated and had saved money, and Billy had done the same thing with the little he earned.

You headed towards the boy's window only to see him land on the ground and take out his bags trying to make as little noise as possible. You on the other hand, had brought yours too and helped Billy by trying not to get him and his bags wet thanks to your umbrella. You gave each other a kiss while the adrenaline was rising. It was the big day and you were as anxious as you were excited. You both headed to the boy's car putting down your bags and stuff and got into the car.

“Are you sure Y/N?” He said holding the steering wheel tightly, you nodded "Yes, remember that together we can do it" you reassured him and he nodded happily. He seemed reborn, new and fresh, a different person. He was about to leave that old life full of suffering to start a new one with the love of his life, you and for you he would also trigger his father's wrath. In the meantime you took a cigarette and started lighting it with the lighter "Ok, together forever, darling" he told you and then put on his sunglasses, you laughed since the sun wasn't out, but he was ready to leave and to adjust to the place “California, we are coming” You said in a confident tone as smoke spread through the car.

#billy hargrove x female reader #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove #stranger things billy #stranger things #fluff #secret relationship #stranger things max #billy hargrove fluff #request

[the-anxious-stargazer]

Like Lucky Strike || Sam Carpenter

Pairing: Sam Carpenter x Fem!Reader

Summary: After Y/N asks out Sam on a date, both of them worry about how the night would go. When the night came and the date went on, they felt their worries settle down knowing that they were both comfortable of each other.

Words: 4.4k

Note: i'm happy y'all enjoyed the first part and honestly i never thought of making a part 2 so here you go! i'm sorry if it took too long i was trying so hard to find the motivation to write the date part during a breakup HUHU enjoy more sam fluff bc this woman deserves the fucking world :) also yes quinn never went bad we are healthy so she is not going to avenge her bitchass brother.

[Masterlist] [Part 1]

・ ‥…━━━━━━━━━━♡♡♡━━━━━━━━━━…‥ ・

"Hey Matty, where's a great place to bring a girl you have been crushing on for quite some time now? " Y/N asks her good friend, who paused his typing,

"Wait, you finally asked Sam out?" Matt states his shock.

Y/N had been rambling to her good friend and boss, Matt, about how things had been going between her and Sam. If he were being honest, his friend's been stupidly in love with Sam since the day she shared their conversation one night at the diner. For someone who likes to observe the world around her, Matt was sure she was the most oblivious of how she felt towards a specific woman that works in her favorite diner.

It had been the day after Y/N had walked Sam to her apartment after work and asked her to dinner, and for the past few hours since she got home, she's been overthinking about it. She ends up planning what she'd be wearing for the date and settled wearing something more casual than what she always wore whenever she stopped by the diner. If someone were watching her choosing between the amount of clothes she had picked they'd think that she has lost her mind. Though Y/N had decided on her clothes, the next on her list was the place they'd have dinner at. Like what Sam said last night, she was aiming for a place they can only afford than going to an expensive restaurant and pouring her entire savings into some dish that she's not even sure she'd like. So that's why she seeks someone else's opinion,

"Yes, I did, and I'm panicking because I have no place in mind to take her to!" The woman nervously answers before she sat down on the chair by his table and tapped her feet. It was something she's been doing for the past few hours of contemplating things.

"Well, don't take her anywhere expensive." Her friend emphasizes as he leans back in his chair and crosses his arms.

"I'm aware, dude. I can't spend my entire bank account for a plate of steak that I can do 10x better at home." Y/N jokes when she can't even cook much.

"Then why not cook her something?" Matt playfully suggests, and he sees the cringe on her face before replying, "And attempt to burn my place down again? Gladly! " 

"C'mon, it can't be that bad Y/N." He tries to convince her.

Y/N suddenly recalls the time she tried to make spaghetti and ended up burning the sauce and cooking her noodles mushy. The chaos she omitted that Sunday afternoon caused her fire alarm to go off, and earned numerous knocks on her door after her attempt. Let's just say she never bothered to try cooking anything fresh other than instant noodles and canned food. Even her mother laughed so hard at her story when she was telling it on the phone.

"Did you forget that I almost burned my place down because of tomato sauce, Matthew?" The sarcasm that drips in her voice makes Matt laugh,

"Oh, what about that taco truck you said you've been wanting to try for the past two weeks?" Matt remembers her words. The woman's eyes light up from his suggestion.

Y/N still had been eyeing that taco truck that was a few walks away from her apartment but had always been preoccupied to try.

"Oh my gosh, Matt. You're a fucking genius! " Y/N exclaims before standing up.

"Then I'll let you get off early later." Matt chuckles at his friend before he watches her walk out of his room and go to the lobby to continue her brainstorming. Though she does stop by the door before saying, "Thank you, Matty. You're the best!"

Meanwhile, in the Bailey-Carpenter apartment, Sam had reluctantly asked her young sister what outfit she could wear, and it ended up Mindy, Anika, and Quinn tagging along. Tara was beyond ecstatic to help her big sister with something like this. After almost a year of living in New York, Sam's finally letting herself be open in the dating scene. The other three were beyond surprised to hear that the Samantha Carpenter was going on a date with someone they had never heard of before, but Tara filled them with what she knew. Quinn and Tara rummage into Sam's closet for some clothes qualified enough for her to wear tonight. 

So far, the progress is going very slow.

"Wait so, she's a regular at the diner you work at and defended you from these mean girls that been harassing you? Damn, now I want to meet the woman." Mindy babbles as she sat on Sam's bed and rests one of her arms in-between her girlfriend's thighs.

"And she always walks her home after her shifts. I sometimes catch up to them and that ass of hers is looking mighty fine in those pantsuits." Quinn adds while studying one of Sam's crop top.

"That's so sweet. Sam, she already sounds like a keeper." Anika smiles at the older Carpenter who has been embarrassed the entire time.

"Oh my god you guys, we're not even anything yet." Sam covers her face.

"Not even anything? Sam, she's literally the first person you opened up to with none of our connections. And she waits for you to finish your shift sometimes and walks you home!" Tara points out facts as she turns around to face her sister,

"And— And, she's the first person to ever make you genuinely laugh! I have never heard you laugh since you know who!" Her sister continues.

"Tell me, has she ever done that to anyone else at the diner?" The younger Carpenter continues, and the three wait for her response as she froze.

The coffee breaks she always offered to everyone turned out mostly to be her's except for the times she was off. Y/N does always wait for her to finish her shift but only when she's on the morning shift. On the night shifts, she's more than happy to accompany her before 10 pm to head home and rest. Sam always texted her whenever she got home before going to sleep and it always surprised her when she got a reply so early to bid her to have a good rest. Y/N only offered the walks to her specifically that even Cate and Dolly tease her about it while Dale proudly smiles at his favorite regular. Sam concludes that her sister was right. When she took too long to respond Tara snaps her fingers and scoffs in amusement.

"See? There is something!" The younger Carpenter finishes before she goes back to help Quinn.

"Okay, as much as I want to help Tara prove that she's right, why do you not have anything spicy here Sam? Not even a red dress or a cute skirt?" Quinn interjects and she gives up.

"I mean, tank tops, skinny jeans, and boots are Sam's thing. I don't see a problem with that." Mindy joins in with a shoulder shrug.

"I agree with her on that one." Her girlfriend beams and Mindy kisses her cheek for it.

Sam smiles at their antics before she finally helps find the perfect fit for her. She felt content to be surrounded by people who support her in this new chapter in her life. Part of her still felt incredibly nervous to go out with Y/N who felt the same way as she changed to the outfit she had planned which was a green plaid jacket, white shirt, black jeans, and walking shoes. It felt weird to dress this comfortably just to see Sam. She's at least checked herself in the mirror more times she can count than usual and has contemplated too many times if she should drop the jacket or not. But the weather today seems to tell her that it might rain one way or the other. Y/N just had to be sure that she was prepared for the worst.

When she finally stopped herself from stressing about her fit, she grabbed her stuff and left her apartment to walk her way to Sam's apartment. Even if it was around five blocks away walking felt better than getting a taxi and getting stuck in traffic at this hour. Y/N put on her earphones as she strutted through the New York crowd and minded her business. The people around her moved in routine as some bumped into each other and yelled at the person to watch their way while some people talked loudly on the phone. She was beyond immune to how the people here are the way they are. So as Y/N arrives at the Bailey-Carpenter apartment building, she catches a glimpse of the sisters waiting for her by the stairs and Tara is the first one to notice her arrival. Her eyes couldn't leave Sam's body as she stood next to her sister who sat on the stairs and tapped her shoes nervously. She wore a cropped tank top and blue skinny jeans to match her usual boots that she wore to work. Y/N always liked her wearing tank tops because she gets to see those arms for free.

"Y/N!" Tara jumped from her seat as she ran to hug the woman nearing them. Y/N smiles at the younger Carpenter and hugs her with one hand.

Sam looks up to see both of them and she freezes at the sight of her. Those doe eyes couldn't leave Y/N's figure as she initiated small talk with Tara. Everything else blurred out as she watched the woman smile as she spoke and her voice was inaudible. She thought she looked amazing even in casual wear. It was too weird to see her outside of her work clothes since she's gotten so used to Y/N visiting her right after work. She didn't even realize that they had approached her. Sam couldn't snap out of her trance until someone snapped their fingers in front of her. Tara giggled at her sister's unresponsiveness when Y/N greeted her and dropped her hand that was in front of her sister's face.

"Huh?" Sam uttered as she blinked a few times.

"You good, Sam?" Y/N asks as she tries to hide away her amusement,

"Yeah, y-you look good." She sheepishly replies and smiles back at her before she hears her compliment her back, "I could say the same for you,"

"You ready?" The woman saw her nod before both of them turned to notice Tara grinning at them.

"You better bring her back home before 10 or we will hunt you down, Y/L/N." The younger Carpenter tries to intimidate her with an emphasis on "we" and it makes Y/N laugh at her attempt. The interaction caused Sam to push Y/N's back for them to leave.

"10 o' clock, Y/L/N! Don't forget it! "

"Yes, ma'am!" She turns around and shouts back with a salute.

"Tara get back inside! I'll see you later." Tara shakes her head while giggling before following her order.

Unconsciously, Y/N holds her hand while Sam's free hand covers her face in embarrassment. As much as she loved her sister dearly, Tara was surely doing all she could to humiliate her in front of Y/N. But deep down, she's more than happy that they bonded well. Tara is kind of easy to befriend so Y/N had no worries getting along with the young Carpenter. The woman in question smiles at her as she covers her blushed face and finally takes the lead to walk them to their destination.

"I am so sorry about her." Sam tries to apologize.

"It's nothing, I like seeing you all embarrassed. It's cute." Y/N let her know.

Sam tries to act cool from her words and removes her hand from her face before looking at her to ask, "Stop it! Where are you taking us?"

"Oh, there's this taco truck I've always passed whenever I come back from the diner and have always wanted to try it out. Might as well try there." Y/N informs as they walk past a crowd.

They were a crowd of teenagers and laughing loudly at their shenanigans. Y/N felt Sam stiffen from the crowd so she carefully let go of her hand and slipped it on her back to settle her hand on her waist. This moved their bodies closer and the move made Sam blush again. Part of her wish was that Y/N wouldn't notice it but she was already too late as it made her smirk. Her cautious mind calmed down after.

"Do you want me to move away?" The woman softly questions to her ear. She could've sworn that her voice shifted from sweet to silky.

Situations like this used to make Sam freeze after Woodsboro, but Y/N has unconsciously helped her get through it. She felt incredibly safe with her around. Safety was something she had never felt since moving to New York before all the rumors started.

"N-No, this is fine." Sam stuttered, cursing at herself for doing so.

Y/N just simply smiles before they continue walking close to each other. The warm feeling on her chest continued that she couldn't help herself from smiling. Sam's nervousness was long gone and she felt more comfortable in Y/N's arms. They were able to pass by the diner and wave at the staff and regular customers inside. Behind Y/N's back, Dale had just won the bet he had with both servers who thought she wouldn't have the guts to ask Sam or the other way around. Cate whined in defeat before handing the cook his ten bucks. The smug smile on Dale's face only annoyed Dolly who also gave her ten bucks and continued cleaning the table she had abandoned after seeing the two.

When Y/N notices the familiar deli shop on the other side of the road she smiles knowing that they are near. Her hands loosen from Sam's hips and beams at her,

"What kind of taco do you like?" The woman randomly asks and Sam hums to think about her answer while they wait,

"My dad used to make these fish tacos when we were young and when we had a trip to Mexico I had this amazing one but forgot it," Sam replies.

"What about you?" She voices out her curiosity.

"I've had Al Pastor once and it was good. The one that's been showing up in my timeline lately is Birria tacos and I swear I want to try them so bad." Y/N happily answers.

Sam only giggles at her ramble before they finally arrive at the place and it was kind of crowded. There was quite the line for both the order and waiting and so far the people who were already eating seemed to be having a good time while enjoying the food. The place had slowly upgraded since Y/N had laid eyes on it. At first, it was just a taco truck by an empty parking space, but now there were tables and decorations around their area with lights complimenting the homey vibe of the area. The owner must have gotten a lot of attention to make this place look lively. Sam liked how cozy and warm the area looked as she observed more.

"So, what are we ordering?" Y/N wonders as she looks her way.

She sees the older Carpenter stare at the sign and concentrate on which order should she pick. The way her eyebrows furrowed as she debated between fish and beef made Y/N's heart flutter. Those doe eyes that used to be so mysterious are now mesmerizing to her. She thought she was so adorable that she didn't even realize that she'd been staring for too long.

"I mean, we only have two options. We can order both and just share if you'd like?" Sam concludes her thought process before she turns to see the woman's reaction only to be smiling at her mindlessly.

"Y/N? " She calls for her when she doesn't answer her.

"Hmm? Yeah, that sounds good to me." Y/N blurts out when she pulls away from her thoughts and it's Sam's turn to be amused by her getting distracted.

"What's on your mind?" Sam tries to tease her and it only makes the woman blush.

"I-I, uhm—"

"I'm messing with you, dummy." The teasing she caused had only made Y/N blush even harder as she scratched the back of her head and laughed along with her.

Just the sight of Y/N like this will be stuck at the back of Sam's head for who knows how long.

While waiting in line, the two continued conversing about their day. Y/N excluded the part where she was panicking over where she'd take them to dinner and stressing over her outfit. She found it cute how all the girls came together to help Sam with her outfit even when she only asked for Tara. Her sister has mentioned the three before whenever she hangs out at the diner when she has no classes in the afternoon. So far, Mindy is her favorite from the stories. As they ordered and finished up, it was time to wait in line. Gladly the service was fast since around four people were working inside a food truck to cook and prepare while two worked to clean the tables. When their orders were placed and the food served later, both enjoyed their dinner with laughs and stories. Y/N liked both fish and beef but Sam preferred the fish because it brought some nostalgia for her. The woman didn't mind offering the majority of the fish tacos to her and just smiled when Sam appreciated her for offering them.

"You know… I thought you wouldn't return them." Y/N began while trying to add some salsa verde to her half-eaten taco. The Carpenter girl figured that they were talking about how they felt for each other as she wiped off whatever was on her face after finishing her last taco.

"Well, I've never really had anyone openly be friendly with me and stick around even when I don't show much... interest." Sam answers.

"Stick around huh?" The woman teases with a grin before biting in.

"I mean, who's the one who kept asking for coffee breaks?" Sam watches her stifle her laugh while trying to finish chewing her food and swallow it down before replying to her,

"In my defense, I offer coffee breaks to everyone." Y/N tries to say.

"And yet you still offered it after I declined twice. You were a tad bit persistent on that." All she could do was shake her head.

"What can I say, I liked the whole mystery behind you. Intrigued me a lot and I'm glad I was patient enough to make it this far." Y/N admits, leaning back in her seat to cross her arms with a small smile.

Her eyes follow Sam's every move as she leans close to her and hovers her mouth next to her ear to say, "You have something on your face."

The shortness of the gap between them causes Y/N to sit still while the Carpenter girl wipes away the smudge of salsa verde near the corner of her lips with tissue. Her cheeks light up as they stay close and she stares at Sam's lips which seem to be more irresistible than before. The urge to fight herself back from kissing her was her greatest battle right now because she was almost losing. Sam found amusement in her enthralled state, knowing that this was the same woman who almost swerved smoothly through her guarded walls for the past month. All that natural confidence she carried with ease was nowhere to be found now. Y/N felt her hold her chin before forcing her to move her attention to her face she had a smirk. Her blush only worsened.

"Eyes up here, Cariño." Y/N almost melted on the floor when she heard her speak again.

"T-Thank you." She was able to bring herself to voice her gratitude.

Sam only chuckled at her when she replied before checking her phone to see the time. The woman before her stood up with a sigh and motioned her to follow, "Come on, my sister's going to potentially hunt you down if we don't get back at 10."

"R-Right!" Y/N stutters as she stands up.

The Carpenter girl only smiled at her as she went to cling her right arm around her left arm. Both of them walked by the sidewalk with comfortable silence between them and Sam leaned her head to her shoulder, trusting Y/N fully. She felt a sense of accomplishment for coming this far. All that patience was worth the effort now that she was here with Sam trusting her safety and well-being with her that she could never let herself be like this around anyone else but her family. That warm feeling came back to her chest as they continued to walk and Y/N only smiled at the feel of it.

"Did you enjoy tonight?" Y/N gently asks,

"It was… better than expected. Thank you for tonight." Sam sends her gratitude to her while trying to look up to see her grinning in content.

"You're always welcome, Sam. You deserve it."

Both continued in silence as they walked back to the Carpenter's place. While walking, Y/N felt something land on her face, and she slightly jumped from it. Her head turned left and right to try and figure out what it was before she felt something land again. The woman then looked up to the sky that had the stars hidden, and before they knew it the rain started pouring down at them. Y/N's instinct was to run and look for some cover, but most of them were being occupied by other people. A thought popped into her mind, and she suddenly remembered that she wore her plaid jacket for this exact reason. She then started stripping out of the said jacket and covered Sam's head to keep her dryer.

"You're going to get wet!" Sam scolds her only to be brushed off,

"It's okay, my place is near we can get dry there!" Y/N yells before grabbing her hand to lead them to her apartment.

Both of them ran through the New York rain as it continued to pour harder and they laughed like children playing in the rain. Tara's joking threats were now forgotten and Sam would probably give her a call later to let her know. Y/N could feel her clothes getting wetter in the process but as promised, the buildings that she was all too familiar with walking past whenever she came home came nearer. Sam noted that she lived on a nicer street than she and her sister do, though only a little. When they reached the apartment building, Y/N quickly looked for her keys in the pockets of her jeans and fished them out when she found them. She then unlocks the building door and lets Sam in first before she follows to close the door behind.

"Oh my god, Y/N. You're all soaked up." Sam points out the obvious as she takes off the plaid jacket off her head.

All she heard from her was a laugh before she shakes her head to brush it off.

"At least you're not." The woman beams at her and she thinks she looks like a little kid smiling at her with her hair flat and clothes drenched.

Y/N noted that Lenard, the keeper, would probably kill her for causing a mess on the floor with a puddle slightly forming from the water dripping from them. She'll apologize to him by the morning before she comes to work, probably with a box of his favorite Marlboro to make up to him.

"C'mon, we might get sick if we don't get out of these," Y/N remarked as she started making her way to the elevator.

Luckily enough for them, the elevator was free for them and they both entered the box accompanied by squeaks from their shoes. Y/N pressed the button for her floor and leaned her weight to the railing at the back, Sam following her. The Carpenter girl takes a moment to stare at the woman beside her and notices how her skin glistens from the water and the lighting of the elevator. It was relatively bright, but not bright enough to be blinding. Numerous thoughts came to her mind as she burned her skin with her unwavering eyes that she felt them. Y/N turns to face her and breathed,

"What's on your mind, Sammy?" Something about the way her voice caused the hair on her arms to go up and made her throw all her restraints away.

And hearing that nickname was her breaking point.

"Fuck it," Sam uttered before she grabs Y/N's face and presses her lips onto hers.

Y/N's plaid jacket that she had held has been dropped on the floor and both couldn't be bothered by it. The force Sam had used to press her hard to the wall caught Y/N off guard and the kiss only made her feel like there was a fireworks display in her stomach. She noted how soft her lips were and the desperation in her kiss as they turned their heads in sync. There was a hint of citrus on Sam's lips and she liked the taste of it that they felt irresistible. Hands slowly make their way to Sam's hips before Y/N flips their places with her now pinning the Carpenter girl, barely breaking the kiss.

If only she knew how her knees weakened when she took dominance.

When it seemed like it was taking forever and both women struggled to breathe, they pulled away from each other but not too far away to miss each other's warmth. Sam decided to be the first one to break the silence in the hair,

"I know I was the one who started, but I think… we're going too fast." She addressed as she caught her breath.

Y/N giggles as she looks down to avoid her stare and a shade of pink paints her cheeks, "Yeah, I agree and I don't mind if you want to take things slow."

Sam just smiles at her in content when she looks back to her doe eyes and makes her heart leap at the adoration in Y/N's eyes. She felt too fortunate to have someone as considerate and patient as her. Almost too good to be true. But she reassured herself that Y/N was nothing like Richie. And Sam hoped her heart won't be broken twice with betrayal.

"I'd like that."

・ ‥…━━━━━━━━━━♡♡♡━━━━━━━━━━…‥ ・

THANK YOU FOR READING I'M SORRY IF THIS TOOK LONG <3

#sam carpenter x reader #sam carpenter x female reader #sam carpenter x y/n #sam carpenter x you #sam carpenter #sam carpenter fanfic #scream 5 #scream 6 #melissa barrera #nena's written work

[brucebocchi]

Ranking every new anime I watched in 2023, Pt. 4: #5-1

hey, i just started a ko-fi for my writing and possible other creative outlets. this post will also be available there, so please check it out and consider tipping/donating as i'm currently between jobs. the tumblr version of part 1 can be found here, part 2 here, and part 3 here.

The list is complete! This took a lot of work but I'm over the moon to get this out there. Please consider leaving a tip if you've enjoyed reading.

Here goes, my top five anime of 2023:

5. Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead

Zom 100’s debut hit like a freight train, especially coming from a brand new studio. It had everything: Visceral satire of Japanese work culture, incredible animation, vibrant colors in unexpected places, clever cinematography, wish fulfillment for everyone who’s ever wanted to Stone Cold their boss, and most importantly: Zombie titties.

The premise is magnetic: When your job makes you feel like a zombie, an actual zombie apocalypse means certain freedom from the grind. Akira Tendo realizes that he can finally use the vacation time he amassed while being exploited and overworked at a legally dodgy black company, so he writes a bucket list of everything he’s ever wanted to do, with all intention of checking off every single line item before succumbing to a zombie bite. He manages to rescue his hunky fuckboy bestie from college, and they embark on a road trip across Japan to finish out the list, along with a beautiful, risk-averse tsundere and a big-tiddy German weeb. 

It's a perfectly fine elevator pitch, and a welcome break from the guns-and-grit quagmire the zombie genre has been stuck in for the past two decades, but what makes any good zombie-flecked media resonate is the human element, which Zom 100 delivers expertly. You’re quickly given reason to care for all the characters, their motivations are clear and relatable, and you want to see them survive and live out their dreams. But more importantly, you just want to hang out with them through their hijinks. It even delves into more serious matters, like what we owe our parents as adults, the ways isolation and bitterness can drive people to act out in their worst moments, and even the factors that push abuse victims to stay with and even return to their abusers. 

Above all, though, it’s a powerful (if extreme) story of finding joy in the direst circumstances. Akira, Kencho, and Shizuka are all kindhearted, well-meaning people whose situations kept them from what they truly wanted to do with their lives, and there’s something kinda beautiful to be found in them finding a new opportunity during the possible end of the world (Beatrix is a sweetie too, but aside from the whole zombie thing, she’s already exactly where she wants to be). The final arc of the season, in particular, looks you dead in the eye and asks you: If you were suddenly faced with the ultimate freedom, would you use the opportunity to better yourself, improve the lives of others, or do whatever the fuck you want at everyone else’s expense? You may not like the answer at first if you’re honest with yourself, and that’s okay. The world isn’t over, and there’s still time for you to be your best self.

Zom 100, unfortunately, fell prey to a cruel irony in the form of production issues. Bug Films is a new studio made up of a former team from OLM that was responsible for similarly gorgeous projects such as Komi Can’t Communicate and Summer Time Rendering. They clearly saw so much of themselves in Akira's workplace exploitation that they had to swing for the fences here. The firm he works for is named “ZLM” in this adaptation, for fuck’s sake, and he fully destroys his zombie boss in the first episode. But new studio or old, the anime industry is a grind, and Bug had trouble keeping up; animation quality did take a bit of a dip after the stunning first episode, and episodes were frequently delayed as the summer broadcast season wore on and ended without the entire seasonal run making airwaves. Hell, it was impossible to watch the final three episodes until just a few days before I could write this sentence.

For what Bug were able to pull off, though, Zom 100 is outstanding. The paintball-colored blood splatters everywhere are an instantly-iconic look that strike the balance between horror and spectacle. Everything and everyone looks gorgeously faithful to Kotaro Takata’s art, and delivers an appropriately cinematic look that the manga always deserved. I almost don’t know what else to tell you but that this show is a fucking blast.

There’s also a zombie shark. What more could you want?

4. Oshi no Ko

I spent a good chunk of 2023 just assuming Oshi no Ko was going to be a layup for anime of the year. Shortly after moving on from Kaguya-sama, I rushed to binge Aka Akasaka's subsequent manga in time for the anime's feature-length debut. I was taken in by OnK's bonkers premise and sudden dark turn and quickly fell in love with the characters, and my anticipation only grew. I had high expectations for the screen adaptation, but nothing could have prepared me for just how lovingly it all came together. This is as close to a perfect adaptation as you can find, and the same can be said about both the preceding and following entries on this list.

Oshi no Ko is an audiovisual feast. Doga Kobo cleaned up Mengo Yokoyari’s character designs just a smidge, but put just the right flourishes on them to make every single cast member instantly iconic. One look at Kana Arima’s eyes will tell you everything you need to know about the level of care put into the visual design of this anime. The performances are on point as well; though many of the main cast members are relative newcomers to the world of seiyuu, you can tell they truly came to understand the characters before they even recorded one line. I’ve already gushed about Rie Takahashi in earlier entries, but her turn as Ai Hoshino is easily one of the best voice performances all year. Takahashi makes a meal out of every single second Ai spends on screen and gives you every reason to care about her as a character.

Showbiz manga in general is obviously missing an audio element, and when an adaptation can expand on that aspect well, it can help turn even middling source material into something transcendent (see also: Rock, Bocchi the). Music is central to Oshi no Ko, and the OP/ED combination is already iconic; YOASOBI’s “Idol” has had the best worldwide chart performance of any Japanese song ever, and the prolonged intro to Queen Bee’s “Mephisto” became a meme in Japan in the same vein as JJBA’s iconic use of “Roundabout.” Rather than taking manga characters’ word for it that someone is a terrible actor, we actually get to cringe along to an amateur actor’s hammy emoting. We get to see and hear what turned a fictional idol group into a national phenomenon rather than just see cute girls posing on the page. All of this is to say that while Oshi no Ko is an excellent manga, it needed a screen adaptation, and especially one of this quality.

Oshi no Ko deserves every shred of its success. I've never seen an anime make a splash this enormous with just its debut episode, even if it’s kind of cheating to say so because the first episode is almost literally a movie, and if I were to give an award for the best single episode of anime this year, it would be that one, hands down. Adapting the entire first volume into a feature-length debut was the correct move (mostly because it’s a tonal rollercoaster, and the Big Event that defines the entire story wouldn’t have happened until the fourth episode otherwise), and the investment paid dividends. The hype naturally died down a bit as the season wore on and settled into a more consistent tone and rhythm, but it remains an essential anime to 2023.

You may have noticed that I have said very little of what this show is actually about, and that’s by design: If you still don’t know the plot of Oshi no Ko’s first episode by now, I refuse to tell you: you need to go in blind. All I will say is that it is an idol anime that glorifies nothing. If you've read this far and still trust what I have to say about anime, I beg you to just take my word for it. It's an incredibly rewarding experience.

3. Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

There's just something so wonderful about taking in an adaptation of a work you’re already familiar with and knowing, almost instantaneously, that every single person working on it genuinely loved the source material and relished the opportunity to bring it to life. Nearly every single member of the original cast is in the dub (including the ones who went on to be MCU mainstays), Edgar Wright is back on as executive producer, Anamanaguchi reprise their soundtracking duties from the video game, and even Bryan Lee O’Malley himself helped co-write everything.

That last detail is probably the most important thing about this entire production: It’s not exactly a secret that the original Scott Pilgrim comics are very imperfect portrayals of a very imperfect young man. I knew reading them at the time that the comic did not have a great grasp on relationships and the dynamics between men and women, and that was at a time in my life when I myself was pretty terrible with and to women. O'Malley has said that he would only revisit Scott Pilgrim if it was “the right thing” and that he was leery of a straight retelling of a work he has since outgrown.

So instead, we have the Rebuild of Scott Pilgrim, to put it simply. Takes Off is a completely new story that reexamines the Scott Pilgrim comics, movie, and even game without undermining what came before it. This series is not a repudiation of Scott Pilgrim (the character or the franchise)’s flaws, nor is it purely fanservice; it splits the difference perfectly. It’s both more mature and completely self-indulgent. This show so easily could’ve marched to the familiar discourse drumbeat of “Scott isn’t the hero here” or “he’s actually not a good dude,” but it instead focuses on what should always be the second half of that sentence: “But Ramona still sees something in him.”

Yes, Ramona Flowers is effectively the protagonist of a new work that doesn’t even have her name on it, and it tackles some surprisingly necessary questions: What was her responsibility in creating seven evil exes in the first place? What made them evil? Are they even that evil? This series opens up entire worlds of possibilities within the extended cast and gleefully dives into them. Though Takes Off may not flesh out every single character, it does take its time with several of the ones who really did need a little more meat on their narrative bones, and even gives some characters new roles just because it would be fun to see them in new situations.

I still cannot believe they got Science Saru to make this show. “They made a Scott Pilgrim anime” and “They brought back the movie cast” are already good enough fodder for that Vince McMahon meme, but “It’s produced by the motherfuckers who made Devilman Crybaby” had me falling out of my chair. The animation maintains O'Malley's chunky, cartoony character designs and works wonders with line weights and simulated camera effects to give everything a tactile, weighty feel, like it’s somehow (and very appropriately) splitting the difference between a comic, a film, and even a video game. There’s a wide array of visual effects that helps to place all of Scott Pilgrim’s influences further on its sleeve: Dynamic action scenes, camera depth and chromatic aberration, and our beloved pixel art inserts. It looks like every Scott Pilgrim, everywhere, all at once.

The live action film’s cast did a (mostly) great job reprising their roles for animation, and there are some wildly unexpected cameos in there. Voice acting is not quite the same as stage or film acting, but everyone pulls their weight, and dialogue feels far more naturalistic than your average anime dub. Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ellen Wong and, surprisingly, Chris Evans are outstanding in their respective roles. I’m gonna have to watch this again in Japanese, though. Fairouz Ai as Ramona, Aoi Koga as Knives, and Yuichi Nakamura as Lucas Lee? Sign me the fuck up.

This is not an apology or revision of Scott Pilgrim the character or work, it is a celebration that still acknowledges and improves on the flaws. If you’re a Scott Pilgrim fan who’d been clamoring for a proper cartoon adaptation, Takes Off may not exactly be what you’ve wanted, but it may be what you needed.  Chances are pretty good that you’ve grown since the first time since you read, watched, or even played something with Scott Pilgrim’s name on it, and it’s a blessing to say that while the character may not have grown, Scott Pilgrim the franchise finally has. 

2. Jujutsu Kaisen, season 2

I’m so glad I picked up JJK this year, if only because I would’ve otherwise been caught in a mudslide of memes I didn’t understand.

Season 2 follows in lockstep with the manga from where season 1 left off, beginning in extended flashback with the Hidden Inventory/Premature Death arc, covering Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto’s high school life and the events that would eventually create the rift between them that came to shape Jujutsu Kaisen’s story. We see very different versions of Gojo and Geto here, much younger and more naive, but only marginally less powerful as they’re sent on an escort mission with the future of the jujutsu world in the balance. Because this is Jujutsu Kaisen, and because Jujutsu Kaisen is for masochists, nothing happens as planned.

We unfortunately do not get the precious slice-of-life hijinks the OP suggests, but if you watched season 1, you should know better by now than to trust an OP. While the initial arc does have its quieter and goofier moments (and some delicious homoerotic subtext), it wastes little time in declaring that this is a new version of the Jujutsu Kaisen anime: Lines are thinner, character models are looser, and action is buckwild. Two of the best fakeouts in the series happen in the span of five minutes. Those unfamiliar with the source material may have wondered for a bit why there needed to be a five-episode prequel arc to start the season, but the pieces would soon fall into place.

And then came Shibuya.

The Shibuya Incident arc was what made Jujutsu Kaisen a must-read in every new issue of Shonen Jump. It reset the status quo for the story and shaped it into something far beyond another “teenagers with special powers go to a school for teenagers with special powers” battle shonen. Needless to say, the hype for its anime adaptation was astronomical.

The Shibuya arc sets the stakes early: Nobody is safe and there may be no happy ending. Triumph is short-lived, and every threat is existential. Everyone who has been in the series up to this point plays a role, and you’re not going to like a lot of what’s needed of them. This arc punches you in the gut, repeatedly, and in between each blow is some of the most intense and innovative action you’ve ever seen. It will hurt, and you will beg for more.

I liked this arc a good amount in the manga, but by the end I was ready for it to be over. I didn’t get the hype around Toji, thought the deaths were cheap, and was so. FUCKING. sick of Mahito. Seeing it in fluid motion onscreen, though, everything just clicked for me and I couldn’t get enough. I fully get now why the girlies have been wetting themselves over Toji; the character modelers were HORNY horny this season. I see now how even the most unceremonious deaths fit into the narrative, or at least one will make perfect sense to me once Gege Akutami and I have a little chat :). And holy hell do I understand now that Mahito is one of the best shonen villains in the history of the medium, that sick bastard. Season 2 was my Rosetta stone for Jujutsu Kaisen; I see it all now. My sixth eye has been opened. Throughout heaven and earth, I alone am the literate one.

JJK’s second season has a markedly different feel from the first from a presentation standpoint, and I feel it’s for the better. Every aspect of the presentation is on point, and I want to call attention to the audio element: The production music, with a heavy focus on jazz piano, is wonderfully unique for the genre, and the voice acting remains top notch. These are banner performances from the likes of Yuichi Nakamura, Kenjiro Tsuda, Takahiro Sakurai, Asami Seto, and Nobunaga Shimazaki, but the performance that defines the Shibuya arc (and by extension the entire season) is Junya Enoki as Yuji Itadori. 

Enoki’s been great this year in lead roles in goofy works like KamiKatsu and Girlfriend Girlfriend (not to mention minor roles in Skip and Loafer and the vending machine isekai), so it’s no surprise that he continues to crush it as JJK’s protagonist; Yuji Itadori is a goofy dude. But the Shibuya arc, for as much ground and as many characters as it covers, is ultimately Yuji’s story as he is forced, time and again, to endure the cycle of the “suffering builds character” meme. His peers and mentors in the first season told him repeatedly that the life of a jujutsu sorcerer is a short and unhappy one, and he now has to shoulder that burden for everyone. Enoki nails every single part of a wide spectrum of emotions Yuji is forced to endure over the course of the Shibuya arc, be it determination, naive confusion, or just pure unbridled trauma. If this isn’t the best voice performance of the year, it’s top five at worst.

Like every major battle shonen release in the age of social media, this season has had its detractors. Reviewers at Anime News Network kinda hated the story, but that’s something you take up with Gege Akutami (and get in line behind the manga readers). I've seen people complain about the animation. Which, like. If you don’t like the new visual style, sure, fine, that’s up to personal taste. But if you think this season isn’t well-animated, you just plain don’t know ball. It may not have a cohesive look, but that was the draw for me: Season 1 was good, but at times I felt like it looked a little too rigid, a little too shiny, a little too samey. Season 2, especially the Shibuya arc, looks like everything. Sometimes it looks like an action film, sometimes it looks like Mob Psycho, and at points it looks, most crucially, like Akutami’s most iconic panels brought to life, stroke for stroke.

The varying styles weren’t an accident: Nearly each episode had its own director, and those resumes cover top-tier animations like Mob Psycho, Devilman Crybaby, Kill la Kill, Heavenly Delusion, Oshi no Ko, FLCL, even Akira and goddamn Golden Boy. While the episodes don’t look entirely consistent from one to the next, the variance is less jarring and more “holy fuck, what am I going to see next?”. The looser style of animation is what Jujutsu Kaisen always needed; Akutami’s art is very loose and dynamic, and his action panels are borderline inscrutable at times. Season 2 nails the feel of JJK to a degree that its adaptation always needed and lets its directors, storyboarders, and animators run wild. At times, characters will look like they leapt right off the page; others, they will look like something you have never seen before in your life.

It is unfortunately impossible to talk about this season without also bringing up MAPPA’s working conditions, and how animators were frequently overworked against nigh-impossible deadlines. It was an open secret last year as Chainsaw Man aired that MAPPA’s animation schedule was a meat grinder, but that came bubbling to the surface quickly as JJK’s second season aired. Word got out midseason that MAPPA had its animators sign NDAs about their work conditions, but complaints still broke containment and several staffers took to social media to apologize for their work looking incomplete, and some even publicly announced that they are leaving the studio. It is stunning that the finished product looks the way it does under such conditions, and I respect the animators for putting in such incredible work, but something has to give. Several major series suffered from major delays this year, some of which I gave significant praise, but MAPPA is lucky that all of JJK came out on time. I wish I knew what could push them to treat their workers with the dignity and respect (and pay) they deserve, but that’s a conversation that covers much wider ground than just anime.

MAPPA has already announced that the series will continue through the next major arc. While there is quite a bit of it that I would love to see on screen, I can only hope that the animators get to rest. For now, though, we can be proud of what they made under duress, even if some will forever wonder what it would look like if the staff were treated like something a notch above cattle.

1. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Fucking hell. This is why I watch anime.

I was curious about this one because a couple major anitubers I watch had reviewed the manga and were effusive in their praise. I knew the anime adaptation was on the way, so I decided to hold off on reading and see what the anime would be like, and with Keiichiro Saito (director of Bocchi the Rock and key animator for Oshi no Ko’s instantly-iconic OP) at the helm, my excitement was piqued. That guy turned a B-minus 4-koma into an innovative hit comedy, so what can he do with a beloved source material and the backing of a legacy studio like Madhouse?

I've had so much to say about Frieren since the premiere, and I still have so much to say now, but to talk about what I love about this show is to talk about everything about this show. When the first four episodes dropped, I described it as “Mushoku Tensei without the baggage,” and I stand by that. There were multiple points throughout Frieren’s first cour where I'd nearly forgotten that I wasn't watching Mushoku Tensei. Every single element is on point: The animation is fluid and expressive, backdrops are consistently gorgeous, voice performances are quickly memorable, and the music is evocative and instantly iconic. This is, plainly, one of the most beautiful pieces of television I have ever seen on nearly every level, be it visually, sonically, or thematically.

The initial four-episode debut was a masterclass in establishing the setting, building emotional investment into the characters, and slowly but deliberately laying out the premise of the season to come. The titular Frieren is an elf mage who, for a very brief decade of her millennium-long life, lent her skills to an adventuring party to slay the Demon King. Though she helped save the world, she was never one for stuff like adulation or socializing, so she breaks away from the group to continue her hobby of collecting various spells and arcana. She regroups with them after 50 years, having kept in contact with none of them, only to find them older and frailer. The party’s leader, the hero Himmel, passes away shortly thereafter, and Frieren breaks down at his funeral, having realized exactly too late how important he was to her and that she’d never really bothered to get to know him as a person.

Some time later, she’s called by the surviving human member of the party, Heiter, under the guise of translating an old text, but soon realizes that he duped her into helping train the young orphan girl he adopted, Fern, as a mage. Upon Heiter’s death, Frieren and Fern head out together, carrying out odd jobs and retracing Frieren’s steps from the journey that changed her more than she realized. They soon learn from the other surviving member of the party, Eisen, that (ooh) heaven is, in fact, a place on earth, and that Frieren may be able to properly pay Himmel his final respects in person. In order to do so, they must make a trip to the north, past the Demon King’s castle. The story of Beyond Journey’s End is, quite literally, a nostalgia trip.

Frieren's story is one of grief and regret, but also how we can use those emotions as a way of moving forward rather than looking backward. Her history is a long one and her memories seemingly everlasting, but she uses them to pave the road ahead of her rather than let them shackle her to the past. This is best exemplified by Fern herself, as well as the other companion they pick up the way in Eisen’s former trainee, Stark. Frieren can carry on the legacies of Heiter and Eisen by helping their young wards grow into the capable young adults they’re meant to be, while Himmel’s legacy lives on in the memories of the towns and villages he helped save along Frieren’s new path, and most importantly, in Frieren herself.

The degree to which Himmel truly mattered to Frieren becomes more apparent to her as the story goes on, and it becomes more evident in her actions. Himmel was a gentle, selfless (if self-aggrandizing) man who was every last bit the hero the modern world believes him to be. With every statue of him she cleans, every flower she plants in his name, every core memory that returns to her, we are watching Frieren become more and more like him in real time. You would expect a thousand-year-old woman to be pretty set in her ways, but we see her holding off on old, bad behaviors because of how Himmel would react to them back then. As Fern and Stark grow into young adults, we see her beginning to treat them the same way Himmel treated her. Frieren doesn’t realize it until later in the season, but it’s apparent to us early on that Himmel well and truly loved her, and I feel that it’s dawning on her that she loved him too and didn’t recognize it. That is tragic in and of itself (this show absolutely is a tearjerker at times and I will cop to getting misty-eyed as I write this), but there is something beautiful, well beyond my grasp, in being able to honor the memory and carry out the legacy of a loved one in how you treat those around you. I don’t think anything could have made Himmel prouder.

Frieren herself is a really goddamn good character too (and expertly voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki, best known for voicing Anya Forger in Spy x Family). Though she is portrayed as quiet and uncaring for the early part of the story, it’s been really delightful to watch her open up, and above all, inadvertently reveal that she’s actually just Really Fucking Weird. For as self-assured and put together as she always seems on the surface, it was great to learn that she’s just an enormous slob (she just like me fr), and any outward expressions of smugness or her offbeat sense of humor are always a joy. “Deeply weird person trying to act normal” is always fun, and there’s just something so consistently delightful about seeing someone so typically calm and intelligent get caught in a mimic chest every single time.

I still can’t get over how fucking good this show looks. Beyond Journey’s End features some of the most intricate, loving animation I’ve seen for stuff as simple as someone putting on a jacket. Action scenes are few and far between, but not a single frame is wasted when shit pops off. Not everyone is as detailed as possible at all times, and they don’t need to be, but everyone looks incredible when they need to be. It’s well above my pay grade to accurately say so, but this show could be a lesson in proper animation budgeting. I could go on and on and on, but I’ve written nearly eighteen thousand words about anime, so I’ll wrap it up. 

The debut season of Frieren will continue into 2024, and if the quality remains a constant, it could very well be one of the best anime of next year too. It has remained as MyAnimeList’s top-rated anime ever for its entire run, warding off the legion of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood fans. Frieren deserves it. I say with no hyperbole that this is one of the most perfectly realized things I’ve ever seen on television. This is an essential watch for anyone who likes fantasy anime, anime in general, or fantasy in general.

#anime reviews

[sugartwst]

Benefit of the Deal

Azul x GN! Reader [Warnings: NSFW]

~AO3 Link~

After his overblot the Mostro Lounge's reputation needs a little help. After getting the idea on how to rebuild, Azul invites MC to a meeting where there is a bit of a misunderstanding...

Azul sighed, tapping his fork on his plate, too distracted by his own thoughts to eat. It seemed like every solution he came up with a wealth of new problems shot it down before he could even say it aloud.

“You know,” Jade began, a grin somewhere between innocent and sinister beginning to play on his face, “if you’re looking to build back trust with your consumers you should simply start with being honest with them.”

Floyd snorted, “Yeah! Tell them all you overblotted over a grade school class photo!” He suggested, his mouth full with half chewed food.

“What?! No— keep your voice down.” Azul bit, “-- and finish chewing before you speak.”

Floyd just opened his mouth wide, pushing around the half eaten mess in his mouth, loudly chewing. Azul grimaced and shook his head.

“Well if that’s not on the table, and people don’t trust you,” Jade pointed out, putting weight on the wound as he spoke, “You could just get someone more likable to be the face of the Mostro Lounge.”

Azul rolled his eyes, “Oh, like one of you?” He bit.

Jade chuckled, “I think we’re pretty darling, right Floyd?” 

Floyd had his tongue out at this point, still stuck on his first bit. At his name, he finally stopped the disgusting display, “Eh I don’t wanna do that. What about Shrimpy, everybody likes them.” He shrugged, going back to his lunch.

Azul furrowed his brow at the thought. It could work. People definitely did like them. 

“Ah the only trouble is they don’t owe me anything.” He grumbled, more to himself, “I’d have to make an offer.”

“I’m sure our conniving— I mean esteemed boss will figure something out, right Floyd?”

Floyd had finished eating and was licking his plate clean. Azul grimaced. 

…

Azul stood by the bar, watching the entrance to the Monstro Lounge. He had settled a list of what he was prepared to offer in exchange for their help rebuilding the Lounge’s reputation. He’d start with a simple offer of a salary and number of free drinks and meals while working, though was prepared to escalate his offer to academic aid and as a Hail Mary if nothing else worked… babysitting Grim. He cringed at the thought.

MC came to the door, the little monster at their heels. He’d had enough of that cat while he was employed at the Lounge... still, he smiled, “MC! Welcome. Great to see you.” He greeted, meeting them halfway.

“Hey— yeah good to see you too,” they chuckled, “What’s with the warm welcome?” Their tone was joking but still genuine. 

“Just glad to see you.” Azul grinned, brushing it off. He put a hand on their shoulder and looked down at Grim. The cat was glaring at him. Feeling the inside of his jacket he pulled out a small tin. “If you don’t mind I’d like to speak with you alone for a moment.” He lowered the tin to the monster. His eyes immediately turned sharp as he snatched the tin from him.

“Oh! These are the fancy sardines!” Grim shouted, holding the box up to show MC. They smiled and nodded, and Grim continued, “Yeah you can talk to them! I’ll be here!” He announced, jumping up onto a chair and opening the box.

Azul sighed, relieved the first part of his plan had gone without a hitch. His hand on their back, he led them through the Lounge into his office. Once inside he gestured for them to sit while he hung his coat on the rack. He was going for a less formal vibe. He’d thought they’d respond better to a more casual proposal rather than the professional contract signing they’d already seen once and ended badly. He had it all planned out. 

Leaning against his desk, he suddenly remembered why he didn’t go for the casual approach. He was bad at it. His grin was lopsided, his gaze anywhere but theirs, and even though he took off his jacket he felt warm. Mentally, he slapped himself. He’d been doing this for years and it was a simple proposal, help the Monstro Lounge, get paid and free food. Easy deal! Clearing his throat, he looked down to them. They were watching him, clearly waiting for him to start.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice!” He began, his voice a little more pitchy than he would have liked. 

They smiled, “No problem.”

The room was silent again, the ball in his court. God— why was this so difficult! Maybe because he was asking the person who both ruined his plans and fixed his shit to come back in and fix his shit again? It was a bit like groveling, wasn’t it? Azul bit his tongue, pulling himself back to focus.

“I wanted to… talk to you… about perhaps an arrangement between us?” Azul began, carefully choosing his words and looking back at MC. 

They nodded, their brow lowered, an apprehensive look on their face as they waited for him to finish. 

He backtracked, “I mean— we are friends, are we not?” He explained one hand gesturing vaguely while the other held onto his desk, white knuckled under his gloves. “I just think we could… benefit each other.”

MC’s eyes widened, their brow raised looking as though they’d just put something together. Azul paused, caught off guard by the reaction— he didn’t think he’d said enough for them to get the picture yet.

“You want to be… friends with benefits?” They asked.

Azul stopped, his mouth opened, but nothing came out. All of the sudden the room was unbearably hot, swelteringly hot. He’d said the wrong thing, the wrong words. He—

MC stood up, looking briefly behind them at the closed door and approached him confidently. They leaned against the desk, placing their hands on either side of him, one on top of his. Azul looked down at them, his eyes wide. 

“As long as you don’t make a contract about it, I’m down.” They huffed, grinning up at him.

Azul’s throat was tight, making it nearly impossible to talk but managed to squeak the word, “Okay.”

MC chuckled, “You’re cute when you’re nervous.”

“Oh.” He offered dumbly, his mind all but turned off as their arms reached around his neck, pulling him down to meet them. They had closed their eyes as their lips met, but he was still staring, frozen until something in his mind just clicked into place. Closing his eyes, he followed their lead, matching the pace they’d set. His hands fell on their hips sloppily. 

Azul hardly noticed as their fingers hooked behind his bow tie until they pulled away, dragging his tie with them. He lurched forward, his breath hiking in surprise. MC laughed, pulling him a few steps forward until they stepped to the side. Azul instinctively turned to them, playing into their plan as they pushed him backwards. The sound he made was… undignified as he fell back onto the couch. His face felt like it was burning, his glasses crooked as he looked back to them. They easily climbed onto his lap, kneeling on the sofa.

Running their fingers through his hair they pushed the hat off his head where it tumbled onto the floor.

“You’re shaking,” they cooed, grinning as they settled their weight onto his lap.

“I am not—” he began, though he realized he very much was shaking. “I…” he began, looking anywhere but them.

They just laughed and immediately he felt the hot spike of shame stab through his chest. Immediately he just wanted to run and hide, crawl away and never come out. Never be seen again. Of course they were laughing, he was a laughing stock— a fuck up— of course it was funny! Of course—

“Azul— Azul, I’m sorry,” they breathed, “Come on, please, I’m not laughing at you, I promise,” They began, their hands on either side of his face, thumb swiping under his eye. He didn’t realize he was tearing up or that he was near the verge of hyperventilating. “I just… laugh a lot when I’m excited.” They explained, chuckling a bit then biting their lip to stop themself. “I’m sorry, please don’t be upset. Do you want to stop?”

Azul paused, taking the moment to gather himself. This… was not what he set out to do. Not what the meeting was for and yet… he looked up to them, his hands gripping their hips for life— he’d be lying to say this wasn’t a favorable outcome. His breathing began to even out, his death grip loosened. He liked MC— everyone liked MC— mostly as a friend to his knowledge but he… he’d definitely thought about something like this. A far fetched fantasy before and now… their lips on his, their weight on his lap, the look in their eyes—  it was real. 

He shook his head, “No— no.” He brought his own hand up to dry his face. God this was awkward. “I’m sorry— I just…”

“It’s fine.” They offered, shrugging off his apology, “I mean… I’ve definitely cried during before. It’s… not a big deal. Happens to the best of us, y’know?”

Azul looked up at them, “Really?” Both confused and interested. 

They shrugged again, “It’s… not really that uncommon actually. Lot of emotions, lot of feelings, pretty easy to just start crying.”

“Oh.” He answered. He supposed that was actually somewhat comforting.

“But… if you want to continue…” they trailed off, their hands falling into his chest.

“Yes! Yes.” Azul coughed.

They smiled, “Okay.”

Leaning forward they met his lips briefly, but moved along quickly burying themself against his neck. Their fingers loosened his tie, tossing it aside and making quick work of the buttons. They trailed wet kisses down his neck until they were able to push his shirt off his shoulders. Diving below where they knew his shirt would cover they were rougher, dragging their teeth along his collar bone, leaving behind marks that would bruise and a thin sheen of saliva. 

Azul sighed with relief as his shirt fell from his shoulders, the cold air soothing hot skin. His hands followed from their hips down to their ass and under them where he squeezed the fat. MC bit down harder, forcing a small wine from his throat. He immediately bit his lip in reaction; however, it was a bit of a wasted effort as MC ground their hips into him. Azul gasped a strangled sort of moan. His hand shot up to cover his mouth as they repeated the motion. 

MC pulled back, resting their head on his shoulder. Whispering into his ear their breath was hot, “How am I supposed to know you’re enjoying yourself if you don’t tell me?” They hummed, their weight pressing into him again as their hand gently pulled his away from his mouth.

They reached their hand down cupping him over the thick fabric. Gently massaging they whispered, “You’re so cute.”

Azul flushed, a sudden spike of heat rushing to his pants, making them just unbearably tight. That… wasn’t something he knew affected him so much. MC giggled but took a deep breath to stop themself. 

“You like that sort of thing then?” They asked, he could feel them smiling against his neck. He just nodded. Was it that obvious?

Biting and kissing along his neck, they unbuttoned his pants. Carefully they pulled his waistband down until his member sprung up. Azul flinched as he was suddenly met with the cold air. 

Pressing a chaste kiss to his jaw, they whispered again, “What do you want to do?”

Azul took a moment to process the question, their hand on his thigh, rubbing circles dangerously close to the base. He couldn’t think of an answer to the question. He couldn’t think of anything really. It may have been a distressing feeling for an overthinker like him if he could think about it. 

“Uh,” his voice failed him, hitching as he spoke, “Whatever you want?”

“Ah— always a good answer.”

He’d gotten it right. Go him.

They pulled away for a moment removing their pants and underwear, the long dress shirt of uniform just barely long enough to cover them. Climbing back onto him, they ran their hand along him, their thumb just brushing over his head. Azul whimpered, his voice tight. They lined themself with him and slowly lowered themself down. 

Azul couldn’t help the instinct covering his mouth as a desperate moan escaped his lips, his other hand gripping their thigh like he was holding on for his life. Stealing themself on his shoulder, MC sighed, sinking further down on him. As they became more comfortable they ran their hand through his hair, grabbing a fistful of the silver locks at base of his skull, forcing his gaze up. They settled back on his lap, worrying their lip and losing a bit of their previously cool composure. Azul’s was long gone. 

His breath came out ragged and rough, wines mixed in anytime they moved even a bit. He bit his hand hoping to stop the slew of obscene noises rolling from him but only worked to muffle it. MC took a deep breath and began to move, their pace was slow but even then Azul wasn’t certain how much he could take. He already felt his head spinning. Lowering themself back to his lap Azul gripped them tighter. Their hands fell to his chest, nails digging into flesh as they rose again, this time quicker as they fell back. Their breathy moans were drowned by the intense sound of his. Muffled wines and whimpering filled the office, their intensity only increasing as MC moved faster.

He whimpered under them, uncovering his mouth he wined “I… MC I’m going to cum.”

“Yeah?” They cooed, “Hold on a little longer, okay? For me.” They hummed, capturing his mouth in theirs. They reached their hand down, pleasuring themself as they lowered themself a final time. MC gasped, hot into his mouth, their breath coming fast as they drew closer. Quickly, they pulled themself from Azul and the moment they did he couldn’t hold it in any longer. Waves of pleasure shot through him, his vision meddled with black dots around the edges as white hot ribbons of cum painted their undersides, dripping down their thighs. 

Resting their head on his shoulder, their hand pushed them the last bit over. Their legs shook, their breath coming hot and quick from their chest. Slow and careful, MC removed themself from him, picking up a nearby tissue box they cleaned off the mess. Redressing themself they looked back to Azul, still wide-eyed and hazy.

They smiled, a bit of pride stirring in their chest at the sight of the usually so collected business man totally disheveled, “Have fun?” They asked, handing him the box of tissues. He nodded.

“Hey… uh,” Azul hummed, collecting himself, “That was… the first time I… that I’ve had…” He trailed off.

“Oh…” They started, looking a bit lost for words, “ah… if I’d known that I would have tried to make it a bit more special.”

Azul just shook his head, trying to figure out how to argue that it was definitely special enough, but just sort of shrugged as he started fixing his uniform.

Picking up his hat from the floor, they dropped it sloppily on his head, “I’ll make it up to you some other time, hm?” They grinned.

“Another time?” Azul squeaked, then cleared his throat, “Uh— yeah. I mean you don’t have to make it up to me this was… this was good, but… another time would also be… good.”

“Good.” They chuckled. Azul fixed himself, standing up to tuck in his shirt and checking in the mirror to fix his hair as much as possible.“Oh, and by the way, I wanted to ask about picking up some shifts at the Lounge sometime? It would be nice to have a little money in case since— god knows Crowley doesn’t pay me.”

Azul’s eyes widened in the mirror. He turned to face them, “Of course— I’m more than happy to squeeze you in.” He smiled, “Throw in a free meal per shift.”

“Oh now you’re spoiling me,” they teased, “text me the schedule when you have it. I’m free in the evenings mostly.

Azul nodded. 

“I should go check on Grim.” They offered, standing by the door, “I’ll see you around though.” 

Azul nodded again, “Yeah. Great! Good.”

They chuckled and left, waving to someone nearby as the door shut behind them. Azul sat at his desk, reeling. He didn’t hear the door open, and shot up as Jade snickered, “So, how did your meeting go?”

#twst azul #twisted wonderland #twst #fanfic #twisted wonderland smut #twst smut

[starfall-jade]

Not your shade of green - Josh Kiszka

Summary: Reader has had feelings for Josh since childhood, and has had to deal with watching Josh with other girls for so long. Tonight wouldn’t be any different……or would it?

TW: Pining (because it hurts so good), angst (if you squint),Mentions of Alcohol and drinking.

The realization that you had feelings for Josh hit you like a ton of bricks. In the 8th grade when Josh had asked a girl named Jamie to the winter formal with him. It was big and extravagant and you hated it. You tried to convince yourself you hated it because grand gestures give you anxiety, but you knew you really hated it because it was Josh and he was doing it for someone else. You were jealous.

You had become very acquainted with the ugly green monster throughout your friendship with Josh. There had been many weeks of dodged calls and texts after he landed a date, and sudden "family emergencies" at hangouts when Josh invited someone he was interested in to tag along. You were ashamed. Yes, but you couldn't explain the feelings you harbored for Josh, they had kind of just always been there and you didn't think they would ever go away.

You thought you would grow out of your jealousy, and maybe even find the ability to be happy for Josh and search for your own happiness. But, every guy just seemed lackluster when compared to Josh, not as funny, or loving, or attractive. In your mind no one would ever measure up to Josh, and to be honest that thought terrified you. What if you could never move on?

So, that's how you found yourself the night of the holiday party at the Kiszka’s. Already in a bad mood from a long week at work, filled with frustrating customers and your boss grating you about a late project. And being forced to move around the stuffy room of people trying not to bump into anyone on the search for your friends certainly didn’t make your week any better.

Finally your eyes met the outline of the longer haired twin, “Jake!" You called out over the music to get his attention. He was casually leaning against the wall sipping a cup of whatever spiked drink was in the large punch bowl.

"Y/n! Hey, I didn't know if you would make it tonight!"

“Well I thought I would drop by for a little while. After the week I’ve had I could definitely use a few drinks.”

“That’s the spirit!” Jake laughed as he brought you into a friendly hug.

You continued to talk to Jake and were in a very serious drinking game of trying to spot the cringy flirting attempts from others at the party. Needless to say you were a few drinks in and could feel the thoughts in your head getting muddled the more you drank.

“Have you seen Josh? He wouldn’t stop talking about you possibly coming tonight." Jake started back up a conversation after you both called a truce on the drinking game that likely wouldn't have stopped until one of you was on the floor.

“No, you were actually the first I saw when I came in.”

“Oh there he is!” Jake pointed across the room and your eyes followed until they rested upon his twin. Josh was wearing a casual brown jumpsuit, his signature mix between a mullet and mohawk of curls styled to perfection. Josh was of course the center of attention, standing in the middle of the room, talking loudly while surrounded by way too many people.

You continued to stare in that direction, deciding to yourself that you would catch Josh later when he wasn’t surrounded by most of the people stuffed into the house. Then, you caught sight of a particular someone that was standing beside Josh, Gemma.

You immediately felt sick to your stomach, either the alcohol was setting in or that green monster was rearing it’s ugly head.

Gemma was a friend of yours from school, but the two of you hadn’t been friends since you introduced her to the boys. You had spent weeks if not months telling Gemma about the 4 boys that were such a vital part of your life, she had insisted on meeting them as “they sounded like fun”. Only when she did meet them she spent the entire night flirting with Josh.

You wouldn’t have cared very much at all, but the week after Josh was only talking about how big of a crush he was developing on Gemma, that’s what broke the dam walls and your jealousy came rushing out resulting in you avoiding Gemma like the plague from then on. You really didn’t set out to avoid her, but every time you thought about talking to her you were reminded of Josh’s feelings. She would talk about Josh complimenting her outfit, or Josh wanting to take her out, or even about the movie nights with Josh she would spend cuddled into his side.

At some point Josh and Gemma’s relationship fizzled out, feelings were compromised when the boys started to take their music more seriously, and Gemma also set out to make a name for herself as part of an all girl rock group. That fact about Gemma had contributed to your jealousy, not only did she have a great personality, show stopping looks, but she could also play guitar in the league of some of the greatest in history. Why wouldn't someone be attracted to someone like Gemma? And now that her band was hitting success just like the boys, her and Josh seemed to have even more in common if that was possible.

Now, Gemma was standing as close as she could to Josh, her hand resting on his shoulder as she laughed at something Josh was saying. Everything was too much, her laugh too loud and abrasive, her hand too close to his neck, his smile too genuine as he watched her movements. You were not drunk enough for this.

“Jake, I think I need another drink.” The words were followed by a small huff as they exited your lips. But you turned to see that Jake had already drifted towards the group of people surrounding Josh and Gemma at the center.

You trudged over to the small table covered with various spiked drinks and a few bowls of chips and other snack foods, a sour look no doubt taking over your face, you were starting to think you should have just stayed home. Standing by the drink table nursing your much too strong drink, Alone, is how Danny and Sam found you, bright smiles stretched across their lips as they looked over your figure. You flashed them a smile which despite your best efforts didn’t quite manage to reach your eyes.

Noticing this, Danny’s smiling face dropped into a look of slight concern. About to speak up and ask you if everything was okay he suddenly heard Sam’s voice drift over the loud music and other voices filling the room, “You look like someone kicked your puppy.”

“Oh thanks Sammy, that’s just what a girl wants to hear.” Your eyes rolled exaggeratedly, a dry laugh accompanying the dramatic facial expression.

“What he means to say is, everything okay?” Danny interjected before Sam could reply back to your sarcasm with no doubt more sarcasm.

“Yeah I’m all good. Just had a work week from hell and all the yelling in here really isn’t helping.” The half-truth flowed from your lips surprisingly well. Danny had always been your designated person to approach if you ever needed to talk which made it that much harder for you to hold back spilling every detail about the feelings festering in your chest.

“Well if you think I’m going to let you wallow in the corner alone all night, you’ve clearly never met me.” Sam said as he began to drag you by the wrist toward the small group of people dancing near the speakers. You didn’t have time to protest as Sam moved so fast causing your feet to follow the direction of his pulling, finally Sam slowed his pace, the two of you directly in the center of the dancing bodies. Danny soon joining and immediately starting to dance around with Sam, their interesting choice of moves causing laughter to tumble out of your mouth. You couldn’t help but joining in their dance moves, feeling your spirits beginning to lighten as you moved around ridiculously.

You closed your eyes and let yourself get lost in the feeling of the music, the flow of the song controlling your body movements. Soon, almost everyone attending the party had moved to the speakers and began to dance, bodies bumping into bodies, couples way too close for comfort. You opened your eyes at Sam's command to "watch this", he pointed at a couple across the floor who were practically eating each other's faces and clawing at each other's clothes. Your face scrunched up in disgust as Sam giggled at your reaction, your eyes drifted over Sam's shoulder to the two figures swaying a few feet away.

Josh and Gemma were dancing to the slow beat of the newest song the DJ chose, but what specifically caught your eye was Gemma's hand, it drifted from Josh's arm up to his neck. She used the hand to direct Josh to look down at her face, a smile making an appearance on his face as soon as he faced her. Your face fell as you watched their interaction, your heart twisting in your chest at the way she touched him, the way she made him smile, the way they couldn't stop talking for more than a few seconds. You always found it easy to talk to Josh but eventually every conversation would drift into comfortable silence as you enjoyed the presence of one another, or so you thought. You suddenly wondered if Josh saw the silence as awkward rather than comfortable, he seemed to enjoy talking to Gemma so much why wasn't he this way with you?

You were put off of dancing at this point, not wanting to stay in the same area and being forced to watch Josh and Gemma dance together as they excitedly rambled and laughed together. You stepped back up to Sam and shouted that you needed some air joking that your social battery was running low when he began to ask what was going on. You shoved your way through the countless bodies before reaching the front door, you let out a huff as you stepped out into the cool night air settling yourself into one of the deck chairs. You were wrestling with your feelings, you knew you shouldn't be acting this way, but every time you looked at them together you couldn't help the immediate jealousy that washes over you.

The door opened and you glanced to your side to see Josh's figure emerging from the house, his eyes looked over you for a short while before he moved to sit in the chair beside you. "What are you doing out here?" Your voice came out quiet, your eyes casted down to the wood floor of the deck. You knew the second you looked at Josh you would feel even more foolish for your jealousy than you already felt.

"Should I ask you the same thing?"

"Where's Gemma?" You chose to ignore his prior comment for fear of outing the real reason you were sitting out here instead of enjoying yourself in the party.

"What?" His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion as you finally allowed your eyes to glance over his facial features, you felt foolish. You didn't want to admit that you were jealous of Josh spending time with Gemma, you wished you could say as long as Josh was happy you'd be happy as well but you knew that wouldn't be true.

"You guys seemed to be joined at the hip in there." Okay, so your attempt at hiding your jealousy was not going as well as you'd hoped it would go. Your mouth was moving before your brain could stop the sarcastic comment coming out of your mouth.

"What are you talking about?" Josh chuckled softly, the look of confusion still present on his face,

"Josh, we don't need to talk about it," You sighed and tugged your knees up to your chest, your head resting on them "you can head back inside, i'll be fine."

"And leave you out here all alone? I don't think so."

“I’m not a kid anymore, I think I can handle spending time on my own.” Your chuckle was short and breathy, nothing like you. And of course Josh realized.

“But you shouldn’t have to?” Josh’s eyes were so incredibly soft when he looked at you and at times you thought that was a sign of hidden feelings for you, but you were slowly being convinced it was just a manifestation of the pity he must feel for you.

The boys had amassed worldwide success and yet they still felt the need to always include you, their dear old friend. You however had put your dreams on the back burner as requested by your parents in favor of a “more stable career”, a more stable career that you were miserable doing everyday. Josh was always your biggest cheerleader, stating that he would always have your back if you wanted to chase your dreams, but you could never bring yourself to overcome the fear of what you would have to lose to gain the life you dreamed of. Exactly the way you felt about your feelings for Josh.

“What ever happened to Logan?” Josh broke the silence, the only other sounds being the slow rock of his chair and the soft blow of the wind. He kept having to brush his curls back up from the spots they claimed on his forehead.

“He was a total loser. He asked me on our first date when I’d be willing to meet his wife.”

“Wait, you can’t be serious. He really asked you that?” Josh sat up slightly in his chair his hand landing on your shoulder as his eyes searched your face for any sign of your words being a joke.

“Yeah. And then when she pulled up to pick him up I practically ran to my car.” Your laugh this time was loud and genuine, “guess I don’t have the greatest history with picking the right partners.”

“That’s because you’re not looking in the right place.”

“And where should I be looking Josh?”

“Maybe the boy that’s been in love with you since he was twelve? That would be a good place to start.” Your brows immediately furrowed at Josh’s answer, but mostly at his tone. He spoke like it should be obvious who he was speaking about, as if this boy was right in front of you.

“Who exactly is that?”

“Me.” He was so matter a fact i that moment you swore it took your breath, your eyebrows met in the center of your forehead as a sure sign of how hard you were mulling over his words. He had to be joking, there was no way that Josh held the same feelings for you as you’d always had for him.

“If this is a joke it’s not very funny.” Your heart was racing, seized by the disbelief washing over you.

“No jokes here pretty girl.” Then, Josh’s hands were cradling your face, his soft brown eyes staring deeply into yours.

“When I first realized I had feelings for you I thought if I waited long enough or went on enough dates with randoms they would eventually go away, they never did. And I can’t pretend anymore. Y/n, I think I might love you.” A huff of air left your lips at Josh’s confession, almost like his words sucked the very breath from your lungs.

“Josh, I’ve been hopelessly in love with you since I met you. And every day since I fall more in love with everything that you are.”

Josh’s hand suddenly rested on the back of your head, pulling your face to meet his in a feverish kiss. A kiss that had been waiting far too long. Your bodies in sync like they were meant to be pressing into one another, your hands tangled in Josh’s shirt as his migrate into your hair.

“Y/n are you out here? I’ve been looking for your every- oh.” You pulled away from Josh’s lips at the sound of Sam’s voice as he rushed out the front door with Gemma a few paces behind him .

“I knew it!” Gemma exclaimed a smile resting on her full lips, “Cmon Sam, let’s leave the lovebirds be.”

Gemma sent you a wink as she pulled Sam back inside the house by the sleeve of his shirt as he rambled about owing Jake $20 because he thought Josh was “too chicken to make a move”.

Once the door was shut and the two of you could return to your private little bubble, Josh leaned down to press his lips back to yours. This kiss was shorter than the previous but no less filled with love and intimacy.

“It’s nice to know they had bets on us.” Your forehead was resting on Josh’s as you giggled at his lighthearted comment.

“Bets on you, and I for one am glad you weren’t too chicken.” His hands trailed up your back before suddenly drifting to pinch your sides, causing you to try squirming away from him to no avail.

When you and Josh returned to the party, it was hand in hand with grins stretched across both of your faces. When Jake noticed the two of you his face lit up in a smile, clearly happy for his twin and one of his closest friends.

“Cheers to the new happy couple!” Jake raised his solo cup, causing others in the room to raise theirs in tandem, either with the knowledge of what they were raised for or simply too drunk and rowdy to care.

You were convinced that the happy expression couldn’t be wiped from your face as you and Josh spent the remainder of the night dancing away, tangled in each other without a care in the world. You wished little you could see this right now, you got the guy that you had spent over half your life wishing was yours and you were in total disbelief at being able to call him yours.

#josh kiszka x reader #josh gvf #greta van fleet #josh kiszka #greta van fluff #greta van fic #josh kiszka fluff #josh kiszka imagine #gvf #josh kiszka fanfiction #josh kiszka one shot #gvf blurb #gvf imagine

[mspandorasart]

Thoughts about Undertale Yellow

Greetings, I just returned from binging through Undertale Yellow, True Pacifist Route specifically, and am seeking a place to let out some thoughts (and steam). It's the first time I'm doing this type of "review" on my blog, but since my thoughts on it are quite strong, I thought, "hey, why the heck not"? Spoilers for the game and its ending ahead, fellas. Buckle up.

First off, let me begin by stating that, for the most part, I had a blast playing through it. The music is amazing, the boss themes real bangers, the environmental ones great as well. My favorite track was the OST that played in the Dunes: a really catchy western vibe with Flowey's theme in it as well, an earworm that filled me with Determination while running through the sandy fields. Then we have a beautiful pixel art style, gorgeous sceneries, great gameplay with challenging and fun boss fights (side note: although I couldn't fully appreciate Ceroba's fight since it had a couple pretty much unavoidable attacks. Or is it just skill issue on my part? Anyway, that part annoyed me more than it should have. Moving on, lmao.)

Furthermore, the game also has charming characters! They are the ones that kept me going and really ignited my interest. Not gonna lie, it took me until the town in the Dunes to become really invested in the game. Martlet is charming and cute, sure, but North Star and his gang, no, that guy specifically sold it for me. Charismatic, funny, very expressive sprites (well, all facial sprites are quite colorful, but it took me until North Star to appreciate/notice just how many there are for each character) and an interesting internal conflict with wanting to entertain others so they forget about the pain of being stuck underground, but at the same time being so absorbed in his persona that he temporarily acts like a douche towards his pals and forgets who he truly is. He also features my favorite joke in the game when he proudly proposes to the salesman that "he wants to buy a gun for the child". Freaking hilarious, love him, huehehue.

Story-wise, I was pleasantly surprised and taken aback by the dark twists of Ceroba and her husband Chujin. And I appreciated how the flashbacks got intigrated within her final boss fight. I don't know about you, but my biggest motivation to play RPGs are not just the gameplay, it's mainly the characters and the story. If the gameplay is amazing but the characters/plot boring, then I lose interest quickly. To me, the real rewards of a tough battle are story progression and seeing just what the characters will do next. Therefore, I greatly enjoyed the breaks between Ceroba's phases in which we saw parts of her backstory. They even made me cry!

...Although, to be honest, I don't exactly understand why we had that insight into her mind in the first place. Why did we survive so many hits to the point of 0.00001 HP? Where's that coming from all of a sudden? Why did time stop at some point like Za Warudo? Maybe that random plot armor (that happened the first time and never again) is explained in another route, but anyway, moving on-

This review-style blog entry only exists because of the True Pacifist ending. I'll be blunt, I hate it. Why?

So it ends with Clover sacrificing their soul for the monsters so they can eventually break free. Which is fine on its own. Clover is for the most part a blank slate of a character, only driven by their desire to seek the lost humans, that's basically it. Maybe it would have made a bit more sense for Clover to see an actual physical proof of their demise before they give up on them completely, but eh. I'm also wondering whether they are really okay with potentially another, possibly innocent human falling down sometime in the future only to get killed by the monsters. But oh well.

(You know, now that I think about it, I actually am a bit salty about Clover's decision to sacrifice themselves, lmao. Would've been kinda cool if it was up to the player, have another ending split.)

Anyways, the issue I'm having is how our cast of supporting characters, Martlet, North Star aka Starlo and Ceroba react to Clover's decision. They are shocked first, but... agree surprisingly quickly?? What?? Excuse me, the entire hassle we went through to get to this point was to stop Ceroba from taking Clover's soul. Now with Clover volunteering to sacrifice themselves, the gang is cool with it??

Of course they don't agree immediately, but are easily swayed within a few arguments back and forth. Man, what friends you are, guys. The reason I'm having this pet peeve in the first place is because we as the human, who has known these guys for just a day, did a lot for them, alright? They all tried to kill us at one point, but we took the beating, the hard battles, forgave them and were there for them during their internal conflicts. We were a pretty decent friend, if I may say so.

Especially with Ceroba! We did a lot to change her mind and path of self-destruction! Yet our so-called friends don't put in the same amount of effort when it comes to convincing us otherwise- or heck, use force if you must- get Clover away from there, lmao. Wouldn't it have been an interesting act of redemption on Ceroba's part, by the way, if she tried to stop us? Being touched by our mercy and refusal to give up on her, she does the same for us?

I suppose the reason I am so baffled by all this is because of Clover being a blank slate, the player character really felt like me, like I was going through the journey and not like I was controlling another character. It felt like my decision to spare them all, to talk to them and wanting to get to know them better. So the group of characters I have really grown to like giving up on me within about a minute of back-and-forth just felt... wow. Thanks, guys.

If I compare it to Undertale's True Pacifist in which every important supporting character gathers up after the confrontation with Asgore, all agreeing with the decision of me, the player, staying in the Underground with them, then oh boy, it really stings. Just would've been a cool, wholesome sign of friendship if Martlet, Starlo and Ceroba decided that "nah, even for the surface, we won't give up on Clover". By the way, in this game, we don't even really get to see why the monsters want to return to the surface so badly. They keep saying they want to, but what are the reasons exactly? More freedom, I suppose. Yet by expanding the Underground with the Dunes, the Mines, the Factory, and some of Snowdin, the Ruins and New Home, their habitat seemed so much larger than in the OG game- What I wanna say is, their desperation should've been shown way more instead of told, so the player can understand the monsters' aspiration better.

The thing is, it's a shockingly easy issue to fix if you really want "the canon ending" with Clover ending up dead and their soul taken: have Clover still have their moment of doubt and realization, remembering what the monsters told them throughout their journey. Then they go to Asgore with their gang, hoping to convince him. It doesn't work out, so Asgore starts a fight. During the battle, Clover realizes it's useless to fight back, it's better to have their soul taken for the monsters, so they allow Asgore to kill them. Their friends are not powerful enough to stop him. There ya have it.

Siiiiigh. Is it just me, being annoyed by that ending? As a whole, the finale felt a little... rushed? Was New Home always meant to be so empty? Is it to build up atmosphere? Yet there were two silly NPCs in the first screen of New Home, making me assume that maybe, there was another plan originally? (If it has been stated in a devlog or any other comment by the creators, then I apologize, I haven't read those fully.)

Anyways, if I didn't care about the game, this rant wouldn't even exist in the first place. I was really invested in the game until the ending just left me... kinda sad, not gonna lie. It will take me a while to process it all.

If you got this far, then thanks for reading. Am I the only one feeling this miffed about the ending? I might go back and edit this post if I find out there are things to be corrected. Buuuut as of now, happy holidays!

#undertale #undertale yellow #undertale yellow spoilers #undertale fangame

[thecynthh]

smart ass - M.S pt 2

synopsis - matt’s not doing to well with his schooling but is determined to get his degree and pass his classes. one essay which is a huge part of their grade haunts him with a bad mark, luckily y/n is willing to him him

notes - college setting, matt gets more attention ! not proofread!

authors notes - sooo i hope yalls like this, its shorter than i would like it to be but nonetheless its out! hope you guys like this one and i promise ill be updating again soon. also taglist soon! ill be asking who wants to be on it very soon and making an official intro and masterlist soon. thank you to everyone who enjoyed the first part of smart ass!

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6:14 pm

friday night rolled around faster than i thought it would, i strip off my diner uniform laying down in my bed in just my undergarments. i lay out a large sigh letting myself melt into my bed. 

my phone buzzed beside me with a notification posted on my lock screen. 

Matt S 🐼 

8120 palace road 7 pm, see u soon :) 6:18 pm

i drop my phone back down, ill just close my eyes for a second, cus that shift really took it out of me. my eyes fell and a light sleep rushed over me. 

————————————————————————

10:17

buzz. buzz. buzz.

buzz. buzz. buzz. 

i swiftly sit up and hear the repetitive ring of my cell phone. i see many notifications from my multiple social media apps and from matt. oh shit. MATT! I completely forgot about him!  

Matt S 🐼

hey are u still coming over? 7:32pm

i know we agreed on 7 but if you need time just tell me 7:55

just get over here when u’re able too, please get here safe 8:57pm

oh shit oh shit oh shit. i quickly slip on some sweats and a baggy crew neck and grabs my school bag, im glad i thought about packing it before work today. i swipe up my laptop from my small desk and dash out the door. my car unlocks as i drop everything that was in my arms onto the seat next to me and step on the pedal getting there as fast as i possibly could. 

i see the outside of the larger house neighborhood and finally get to the house I was told to come too, pulling into the driveway. I see a silhouette of a man in one of the windows. 

i grab all of my belongings scrambling to the door, clicking the doorbell. I hear a melodic tune ring throughout the house. footsteps grace the front door as the door swings open. matt's eyes widen as they scan my body. 

He pushes the storm door open and says “oh you came.”

“im SO sorry matt, i came home after my shift and i ended up falling asleep on my bed because there was this mishap at the diner and i got blamed for it and i swear to god my boss is such an idiot and im so fed up with his bullshit.” i take a deep breath in “and then i know we agreed  again i fell asleep like a goddamn idiot.”

he just stared at me like i was the idiot, “im sorry is what i meant to say.” i continued 

he chuckles a little before stepping back slightly giving me space to enter, “hey its alright just come on in. follow me.” he says using his hand signaling to come along. 

we make it to a fairly large bedroom, i see a gaming setup squished onto a desk that was clearly not meant for housing gaming paraphernalia. “you can throw whatever we need onto the bed, we can just study there. and get comfortable. I know it's late but i'm still okay to stay up and we can even order coffee and some food as well if we get hungry. there’s not much in the fridge but chris’ soda if i’m being honest.”

“i’m alright for right now so let’s just get started on studying” i say to him.  

————————————————————————

1:29

“did you get that?” i ask matt after reviewing what we just went through. 

“yuuuup” he says with a smile, i noticed that his eyes squint when he smiles or laughs, its cute. i don't really think he got half of what i was saying but i think i got my point across.

“ i think it’s a good time to take a break, and plus we’ve been at this for 2 hours already.” i lay my head down against his plethora of pillows and just take a deep breath in. he copies me and comes falling down onto his bed.

i feel his weight shift as he reaches over for a remote to turn on the tv in front of us booting up netflix. moving down to his recently watched “brooklyn 99” begins to play as i hear the familiar voice of andy samberg talking. the theme song plays as i look over the boy beside me. 

“you like brooklyn 99?” i ask him with a furrowed brow pasted across my face. 

“god i love this show, every single episode.” he tells me looking back at me, his eyes stray from my eyes to my lips to my body. i didnt mind it to be honest, i kinda liked it if anything. 

I directed my sight back to the show. We sat in a comfortable silence but i couldn’t stay focused for long as my eyes wandered over to his sweats, then his hand near them. being fair he actually was pretty fine, i heard rumors before that he slept around a bit a year ago but it was old news quickly. 

as we near our third episode my eyes feel heavy and all my cares slipped away again as i drift off to sleep in his bed. 

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2:49

ugh, i wake up feeling incredibly hot. i rip off my sweater and dip underneath the covers, wow my sheets feel really nice, very fluffy…. 

#sturniolo triplets #matt sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #matthew sturniolo #matthew bernard sturniolo #sturniolo smut #sturniolo x reader #matt sturniolo x reader #Spotify

[titlemewickedwonderland]

Joseph's Girl - Joseph Quinn (One-shot)

Author's Note: This was a request by @0-kxylx-0 to make a second part to the first One-Shot called Death Traps for Joseph Quinn and I have delivered it! I hope it's as good as the first one! Most of it was written late at night!

If someone had told her that she'd become not only a night owl but she'd become friends with people she had only seen through a screen she would undoubtedly be asking if you were drunk. But her life had actually transformed into something…adventurous. Okay, so let's recap her life before, shall we? Y/N Y/L/N, a young woman who used to work a tedious 9-5 office job being so under-appreciation -probably by sexist coworkers and bosses - and during one fateful night of drunken confessions with a friend lands her a job working for Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show?! What? Like, not only did that happen but on top of that Y/N had the most unexpected encounter of her life. So, what would you say if you were running late, looking a hot mess, and thinking the world had it out for you on your first day at your dream job? Well, get stuck in an elevator with your celebrity crush while having a panic attack because you're a claustrophobic person only to be comforted by the sweetest angel that wrapped his hands around your heart that you were stuck in. That's right, Y/N would not have thought it real if she hadn't experienced it firsthand because frankly, that is her. Her life, her day, and her dream come true, But even after such a climatic start to her day, the hours were not yet over, and as the young woman downed another cup of lukewarm coffee that probably was the camera man's if she was being honest her body finally felt the ache and need for collapse after such an emotional and grueling sort of events Y/N just wanted to go home. But what she really wanted was for her to go home…well not alone if she could help it. But hey, a fangirl could dream, right? Even if her dream was looking more like a wet dream on legs right about now as his tall frame unfolded itself from the set chairs and shook her boss's hand as they walked off from the bright flashy lights in her direction.

She hummed lightly whenever the pair arrived in her vicinity and she held out a brand new steaming hot cup - in a mug this time - in Jimmy's direction who gratefully took it and sipped at the hot liquid. Running a late-night show was definitely a tiring job and Y/N always admired those who put their minds to it like Jimmy even if she could never fathom where they got that sort of energy. Guess he was just a night person although tonight he seemed a little more tired than usual. Upon meeting up with the girl the two males stopped whatever they were bantering about just to be polite and greet her which she gave a soft but tired smile in return for the simple gesture even when her eyes strayed a little bit longer in Joseph's direction.

"Thanks for coming by on short notice Joseph. It was so great to meet you in person man! I look forward to catching up again soon." Jimmy clapped the man on the shoulder before excusing himself to go talk to his producer who was standing off to the side with some clipboard.

"He's a good guy." both Joseph and Y/N who were staring at Jimmy's retreating back finally returned their attention to one another and he was graced with that pretty little smile of hers.

The young woman had managed sometimes after they had arrived to put herself back together properly and seemed a lot calmer right now if not exhausted altogether. A short pause of silence between them started to feel as if there was nothing left to do but say farewell and be on each other's way but unbestowed to the both of them they did not want to simply say goodbye and leave without the chance of making either an impression or getting the other's numbers. The problem was, the intern assistant girl was not one who was very forward and she had kept everything she could to not fangirl over her crush who stood just a mere foot away from her looking casual with hands in his pockets even when his big puppy eyes seemed to stare deeply into her soul.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" she questioned shaking her head. "Are you gauging whether I am sane enough to go into the elevator on my own?" she questioned in a joking manner that caused her companion to laugh and glance away.

"No, I was just looking because you're beautiful." the compliment made the girl flush a bit in surprise unsure of how to answer so she defaulted on humor to cover it up.

"Yeah, now that I'm put together and look like a normal assistant walking around here aye?" she rolled her eyes playfully before watching as Joseph chuckled and scratched at the back of his head as he tried to match her wit.

"You were beautiful before, don't sell yourself short love." he chided before his smile grew a little bit. "And yes, perhaps I was waiting around to see if you were going to brave the lifts again or if you needed me to hold your hand through it just in case."

"Joseph Quinn are you flirting with me?" she dug deep for whatever boldness she could find and blamed it on a long night and sleep deprivation but damn did those red cheeks and shy smile of embarrassment makes her insides flutter with butterflies.

"Depends, is it working?" he asked hopefully as his tongue pressed to his front teeth with a playful glint in his dark eyes.

Oh god, THE Joseph Quinn himself was flirting with HER? Did she die and go to heaven? A subtly pinch to her arm made her wince which she covered up with a little giggle. As far as she had followed on social media, the actor didn't have a girlfriend and people speculated that he could be in fact gay from the many videos and fan-edited clips of interviews he had done with Jamie Campbell Bower - which by the way, the girl was so on that train! - so it came almost as a surprise that he was openly flirting with her. A good kind of surprise though.

"Perhaps…." she replied coyly

"So, you wouldn't be opposed if perhaps you'd be up for a late night dinner?" A brow raised hopefully as he raised a hand to scratch at his stubble. "I know this great joint down the street that makes excellent burgers and milkshakes."

She laughed a little bit knowing exactly what he was talking about and nodded. "I think I can be persuaded to go there. I was feeling a bit peckish myself so burger and shakes sound absolutely divine right now." her laugh was more genuine this time as she pointed over her shoulder. "I'll go grab my stuff and meet you at the elevators." she said turning to leave with parting words. "I might need to cash in that favor of holding your hand for the ride though after last time." and the chuckle he sent her made her swoon as she hurried away to gather her things

~

He had insisted on driving her over to the diner and the car had been nothing but laughter and chatter between the two. They hadn't realized how much they actually had in common despite the fact that Y/N was 5 years younger than Joseph. They got along swell and when they eventually pulled up and went inside the 24/7 diner for a table they were like two peas in a pod. The pair were the only ones inside the diner asides from one trucker sitting alone enjoying a coffee by himself across the way so they were not worried about being spotted and could talk freely. After their food was ordered Y/N turned to find Joseph watching her with this little smile on his face that made her scrunch her nose playfully.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked in amusement.

"I dunno, guess I'm just wondering how perfect you are." the comment made a deep blush creep up her neck to her face.

"I-I'm not perfect Joseph. You already saw me at one of my bad times; not worst mind you but still." she replied embarrassed.

"Nonesense! Everyone is afraid of something; just because your claustrophobic doesn't make you a bad person. I rather like you as a person Y/N…" his smile softened as those big brown eyes gazed at her. "You're very sweet, great taste in music, and have a humorous wit. If I'm being honest I'd probably going to be asking for your number after dinner." he laughed which she joined in.

"And I'd probably be giving it to you. You're actually probably the first celebrity that I've met that's like super cool. Granted, you are the only one that I met but that's beside the point." she joked. "So, let's just say I'm flattered."

"You should be, you're great!" Joseph grinned over the table at her before turning his attention to the waitress as she returned with food and milkshakes for them.

The pair dove right in chatting away between bites and when the bill came Joseph snatched it quickly before she had a chance to see it much to her distaste but he quickly paid and left a nice tip before he was dragging her from the booth and out of the diner with their left over milkshakes in hand. At first Y/N thought perhaps their night was over but instead of dragging her to the car to drive her back he kept on walking down the street down on the sidewalk with her hand firmly grasped in his. Ah, what a romantic she thought. She didn't mind it though as they walked

"So, you mentioned loving my character in Stranger Things; you're one of the Eddie girls huh?" Joseph commented as he walked looking up at the dark sky dotted with pretty stars.

"Oh yeah, totally an Eddie's girl. I love the way you portrayed him. Oddly enough you know something? He's not far off from someone else I know." she commented bumping shoulders with him causing him to smile down at her.

"And for the record….I think I'm more of a Joseph's girl than I am an Eddie's girl. Don't get me wrong I love Eddie but…" she trailed off and looked down at their moving feet shyly. "I think his actor holds a little bit more of a special place in my heart."

"Yeah?" there was a sense of awe behind his tone as he looked down at her making her look back up at him and into those deep brown eyes that seemed to glitter with the starlight that dotted the skies as cheesy as it sounded.

A smile curled her lips as she nodded. "Totally."

He laughed a bit and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to draw her close to his side as they walked along the path to a park. "Joseph's girl…I like the sound of that." he mused as he pressed a light kiss to her temple and the sweet gesture made her flush.

"Whoa now tiger." she joked "What ever happened to asking for my number first?" she teased looking up at him to see his face twist into a playful smirk

"I think we're getting the girl's number went before dinner but we did dinner first so…." his lips puckered lightly in thoughtfulness and Y/N couldn't help it as she leaned up to press a kiss to his cheek with a warm smile.

"It's okay, what's the fun in doing things in order hmm?"

"Spontanous. I like it!" Joseph laughed as he suddenly picked the girl up by her waist and spun her around much to her delighted squeal of surprise.

"Since we're doing things out of order tonight love, would you be up for a movie at my place tonight?" a brow raised in question making her look at him in surprise.

"You have a place nearby?"

"Course I do." he chortled but she didn't care because who could say no to that sweet face?

"Yes, I'd love to but only if I choose the movie!" she pointed a playful finger in his direction and he grabbed her hand to pull it closer to his mouth to place a tender kiss on her knuckles.

"As the lady wishes!"

And that my friends, is just how one chance encounter could land you in a whole lot of trouble and fun. So take it from Y/N, take a chance because you never know just where you'll go if you simply speak up folks!

#Joseph Quinn #Joseph Quinn one-shot #joseph Quinn x reader #joseph quinn x y/n #joseph quinn imagine #titlemewickedwonderland

[nativeofsumeru]

Reliving the Past (Sampo x Reader x Gepard) (PART TWO)

Go find the first part here!:

(not proofread)

~~ ”You mind telling me what the hell happened back there?" Sampo asked, sitting on his side of the table. You looked up from fiddling with your ring, one Gepard had given to you all those years ago that you continued to wear absentmindedly for aesthetic purposes. You couldn't read what his eyes were conveying to you. Anger? Worry? Jealousy? Intrigue, perhaps? Maybe a combination, to be honest. "Why were you giving that Silvermane dude 'goo goo' eyes, huh?"

Your mind ran back through the events of just a few minutes ago.

~~

(Earlier)

"(Y/N)?" Sampo's gaze kept shifting from you to Gepard and back in an almost frantic manner, before waving his arm in your face.

You didn't want to look up at the man you already knew was standing before you, but you just couldn't help it. He hadn't changed one bit. His hair was still a shiny, bright blonde glistening in the Belobog sun. It looked soft as ever, part of you wanted to brush your fingers through it once again.

Don't even get started on his eyes..

His diamond, baby blue eyes..the ones that used to make your heart melt, still had their effect.

"Um, hello?! Earth to (Y/N)!" You blinked, snapping out of your daze. You just couldn't believe he was right here. Standing in front of you. Staring at you.

Don't even get started on his eyes..

You almost didn't pay attention to lover until Serval came up behind you, headed towards her brother.

"Geppie, hey! You're much earlier than expected. Why don't you come in? Haha, it's been a long day hasn't it." She said, putting an arm around him and practically ushering him inside the shop.

"Um, I..." Was all he could say. You moved to the side of the doorway, eyes not leaving his gaze until Sampo finally shut the door.

~~

"That was Serval's younger brother..." You began. "We grew up together alongside Serval and Cocolia." You finally put the ring back on your finger firmly and left it alone.

"You mean the Silverman Captain is related to your bestie over there at the shop?" You nodded.

"Yea." You paused for bit watching his reaction before continuing to speak. The waiter finally came over and brought your menus before the conversation continued.

"Thank you, sir." Sampo told the waiter. "Well, that explains it. Who would've thought little bro would've become such a big deal in the Overworld, am I right?" He seemed slightly more relaxed at this news, which only made you stare at the table in worry. You almost couldn't focus on the menu.

After deciding on what to order, you decided to finally reveal a last bit of important information as the waiter brought brought water for the two of you.

"He's also my ex." Sampo, mid-sip, choked and nearly spit out his freshly consumed water into your face. "Sampo! Are you ok?!"

After composing himself and placing the glass back on the table, he finally responded.

"He's your what?!"

"Yup."

"I'm sorry, I think I misheard you. I thought you just said that Silvermane Guard is that ex you've told me about before." He just stared at you, hoping that you would, in fact, correct him on what he understood now to be true. "Let me get this straight, Gepard?"

"Yup."

"Is a captain of the Silvermane Guards."

"Yup."

"Gepard, is also your boss's, slash, best friend, slash, ex band member's, sister."

"Uh huh."

"This same Gepard, is your ex."

"That's pretty much it."

"Oh (Y/N), my dearest darling dear, this would've been great information to know, I don't know, maybe, let's see here, a couple months ago!" You lowered your head in shame.

"I know! I thought I told you and I guess a detailed conversation about it never came up."

"Oh you told me you had an ex. It just would've been great to know that the same guy has been hunting me down for crimes unknown for the past year." Oh you loved your drama king. "I just don't know what I did wrong." Sampo said the last bit, raising the back of his hand to his forehead and feigning dismay.

After finally giving the waiter your meal orders, you finally started to relax a bit, at least about how Sampo was taking the whole thing. He didn't seem upset, just out of the loop. Now that he was back into said loop, he just carried on as his usual, overdramatic, romantic self.

"Please don't use my info as intel for your mercenary business." You told him, seriously.

"Darling, you must realize, intel is my business. It's what I do! It's how I pay the bills." You glared at him.

"It's also MY personal business Sampo. It's your PARTNER'S personal business. That they don't feel comfortable having you share with the rest of the world right now." At you statement he seemed slightly disappointed and let out a sad sigh.

"Fine. If that's what you wish. I'll make an exception for you this once, alright sugarcube?"

"Thank you. It's a bit of a sore subject right now. I haven't seen him in years." Your eyes trailed down to your ring.

"Well enough about him right now. You've moved on now and life is good." Your expression turned solemn.

"Yea...moved on..."

"No worries, my dear. Your great Sampo Koski is here to protect you from the evil Silvermane guards!"

The waiter finally brought the food. Sampo spent the conversation telling you about his recent business success.

"That was good." You said, wiping your mouth and placing the napkin cloth on the table next to your freshly eaten dish.

"Indeed it was, my dear. You really do have the best taste in restaurants I must say." Your boyfriend complimented, grabbing the receipt after paying. It was late in the night now, dark. You were not going to be returning to your apartment in the Underworld tonight.

Sampo, as always, opened the front door for you. Once you exited, he began to walk beside you, arm around your waist, heading to his apartment.

Your mind began to wander back to the topic of Gepard. The whole interaction replayed in your mind over and over and over again. No matter how many times you tried to justify yourself, you still felt so embarrassed with how the whole interaction went. You wished you had said something...anything would've been better than staring at him as if you were a gaping fish.

Sampo noticed your face was starting to turn red. At this, he smirked. He presumed it was from you blushing, not even considering it would be embarrassment from the day's earlier events.

His mind was wandering to places elsewhere meanwhile yours was in turmoil.

You sat on the bed, scrolling through old photos from your childhood and your time before the shutdown between the Overworld and Underworld. So many pictures with you, Serval and Cocolia littered the screen alongside pictures you swear you deleted of you and Gepard.

One piqued your interest. After clicking, you found it was an image at Gepard's graduation from his training as a Silvermane Guard. You were proudly hugging him with a big smile on your face as he held up his certificate in his graduation gear.

You were so lost in thought you almost didn't hear the door to the bathroom open, much less see Sampo walking towards you, shirtless.

"Whatcha doin, darling?" He asked, catching you off guard as you just now realized he was lying on the bed next to where you sat, staring at you almost deviously.

In a panic, you immediately turned your phone off and put it at your side, the one furthest away from you.

"Nothing." His gaze worriedly followed the motion leading to where you put your phone, but he just simply shrugged. It's your business after all.

He sat up, beginning to lean towards you. Slowly and gently, his lips made contact with your neck. This also caught you by surprise as your mind was still scattered. Without thinking, you just pushed him away, much to HIS surprise. You've never shied away from affection with seemingly no reason before.

"Sampo, can we not do this tonight? I'm feeling tired." His facial expression was now one of concern.

"D-Did I do something?" You shook your head.

"No, just a lot on my mind lately. I'm still getting my affairs in order up here in the Overworld and I'm just feeling overwhelmed."

"I understand that feeling. Anything I can do to help?" His question was genuine.

"I just want to sleep." Although disappointed, he wasn't cruel. If you just wanted to rest tonight, that was fine. It's not like he couldn't give you other forms of affection.

"Are you going to bed right now?"

"Yea. I just don't have energy right now, sorry."

"That's fine. Uh, goodnight, I guess sugarcube." He kissed your forehead before raising the covers over the two of you. "Sweet dreams."

"Thanks." He continued to look at you, almost as if waiting for you to say something else. "What?"

"Nothing, just uh, sleep well." He awkwardly turned around onto his side to where his back was facing you. You sighed, flipping the light of the lamp next to you off before adjusting yourself under the covers, back towards him. You stared at your phone for a bit, before closing your eyes and trying to get swept away to dream land.

Sampo on the other hand, wasn't able to close his eyes so easily. Anxious thoughts filled his mind. He's not dumb, he saw your screen. He knows how to read people.

You weren't starting to revive your feelings for that Silvermane boy...were you?

~~

Since some people wanted to know when Part Two came out:

@helloyuki (I'm not sure this is the right one, I've never tagged people in Tumblr posts before please bear with me!)

@qwnelisa

@crowleysthings

#honkai star rail #sampo honkai #star rail #hsr sampo #sampo koski #honkai star rail x reader #honkai star rail sampo #gepard honkai #hsr gepard #gepard landau #honkai star rail gepard #sampo x reader #sampo x you #gepard x reader #gepard x you #sampo x gender neutral reader #Gepard x gender neutral reader #Sampo x reader x gepard #Gepard x reader x sampo

[queermania]

I have a real question that I promise I'm not trying to start shit. Just really wanna know your thoughts. Do you think Jensen wants them to make destiel canon or Dean queer?

ummmm.... maybe? my honest answer is that i don't know. i have a lot of different thoughts that add up to a certain conclusion but it ultimately means nothing because i don't know him and i have no idea what he's thinking about anything.

my general speculation (based on nothing but vibes and an unnecessarily large wealth of spn knowledge) is that if kripke had come to him some time during the first three seasons and said, "hey we wanna make dean [insert flavor of queer here]" jensen would've been like "cool, boss, just tell me what you need me to do."

(after s3, i think the only flavor of queer that was even remotely an option was bisexual so that's what i'm using from here on out. however, i do still believe in my heart that dean is gay, for the record <3)

i think if any of the show runners or writers tried to make dean explicitly bisexual (with or without the inclusion of destiel) during s4 through about s10, jensen would've done it because he's a professional, but i also think he would've pushed back on it at least a little, for a variety of reasons.

i think starting around s11 all the way to the finale, he would've been fully on board with explicitly canon destiel, if the writers made that call.

and then that brings us to now and what happens going forward, because that's the real question. i do still believe that if it's out of his control, he will do whatever the people in charge want him to do. but i don't think that particular decision is out of his control anymore. so?

so what i know is that in the past he's said that dean is straight and that destiel isn't a thing, canonically. and he's never said the opposite (outside of the whole "it's a story and it can be whatever you want it to be" type rhetoric).

however. i also know that he was fully on board with the confession and that he was trying to get the rights to supernatural before it was even over because he already knew he wasn't satisfied with the way it was going to end. that tells me that he's always fully planned on the confession being resolved in some way. there are, broadly speaking, only two ways to resolve it:

1. dean doesn't reciprocate.

2. dean does reciprocate.

the thing i'm stuck on is: what does the show even look like going forward if dean doesn't reciprocate? i can't imagine jensen thinks that would go over well. i am generally of the opinion that our part of the fandom vastly overestimates how much of the audience we actually make up, but i just don't believe that after all of this *gestures broadly at the last however many years* he could possibly think that's satisfying. because what happens? dean says "thanks but no thanks" and then... they just pretend like it never happened? dean gets a female love interest? cas stays in heaven as an angel with jack and dean goes back to earth and has a human life without the family he chose over his father? what is the point of it all?

like, i just don't see a way to go forward without dean reciprocating that doesn't feel empty and unsatisfying and depressing for everybody (apart from another relatively small faction of the audience who are going to be unhappy with literally anything that isn't just sam and dean and nobody else anyway).

not to mention, there's no way jensen's not aware of the cultural impact of destiel and the confession at this point.

also, jensen suffers from terminal dean-girlism. he wants that germophobe to be happy. all roads lead to a certain conclusion. but again, i don't actually know.

(also just to be clear i believe dean already is subtextually queer and destiel is reciprocated and nothing you say will change that for me because i watched the show. i have the receipts.)

#replies #anonymous #jackles

[maggiedanikka]

Superstar (Preview)

Pairing: Rooster x f!reader

Author's Note: Hey besties! I am so so so sorry for the long hiatus, the fall semester started and I am taking 18 credits this semester along with 4 jobs and studying for the LSATs so I've been in the trenches to say the least. I have been sporadically working on this fic, and I originally did not want to release it until it was fully completed but today is my birthday so I was feeling magnanimous and have decided to release this preview of my one shot that is currently in the works. Please hold on a little bit more. If you all like this preview I will release the full version. Also keep in mind I started writing this before TGM was released on streaming so I wrote parts of it based on memory (because the beginning is set during the actual movie).

Hopefully Part 10 of Let Me Go will be out soon!

Okay on to the story.

Bradley Bradshaw’s voice was an enigma to you. How could anyone's voice be so hoarse and yet so strong?

As an air traffic controller for the Navy, you’ve heard every type of voice imaginable. The gruff demanding ones from the Air Boss, the shrill screams of pilots having to eject due to a bird strike, the quiet dulcet tones of a shy WSO, and everything in between. 

The first time you heard his voice through the comms, you weren’t exactly starstruck per se, just a bit thrown off.

“This is Dagger 2, asking for clearance for take off.” 

It’s not like you didn’t know who the pilots flying this mission were. Everyone in the goddamn Navy knew who they were, they were the best of the best. 

You even saw their pictures. Thought some of them were cute (especially the one rocking the Miami Vice Stache). But hearing their voices was different from reading their files.

Though most of the details of the mission were classified, you had a basic idea and knew that there was a good chance that someone wasn’t coming home. 

“This is Dagger 2, asking for clearance for take off”

The voice repeated. You snapped out of your thoughts, the voice was smooth as honey and it had just a hint of fear but yet so heavily determined. Your heart really went out to the poor pilot. 

“Dagger 2, you’re clear for take off.” You said, trying to convey as much sympathy as you could in those words. 

The actual mission itself didn’t last longer than 3 minutes. Working for the navy, you should’ve been used to the high stakes situations that often go hand in hand with these kinds of assignments. But you couldn’t help but sit on the edge of your seat during the duration of the mission.

There were a few initial hiccups, you felt like you were watching a movie as you listened to the daggers communicate with one another. Their nervousness (and to be honest your own) upon seeing the SAMs and your both concern and irritation at Lieutenant Bradshaw’s cautiousness. 

Yes, his by the book and precise flying is part of the reason why he was considered one of the best, but if he didn’t throw that shit out of the window and speed up he will end up getting himself killed. And even though you didn’t necessarily know him, this possibility filled your body with so much dread.

You felt relieved (well only slightly, they hadn’t made it out of the woods just yet) when Rooster finally got out of his own head and sped up. The two miracles were successfully pulled off and the 4 jets had made it past Coffin Corner. Now it was a dogfight all the way home.

You commended just how level headed and pragmatic the pilots were as they evaded the SAMs and attacks that were thrusted upon them. You knew if you were in the same situation you would’ve panicked and blown up by now. Your admiration was interrupted by the mayday call of Captain Mitchell.

A heavy tension set in the control room, everyone was shocked at what just transpired. It was interrupted by the voices of the other daggers. Notably Lieutenant Bradshaw and Lieutenant Trace. 

Phoenix had announced that she and Lieutenant Floyd were heading back to home base, along with Payback and Fanboy. However, you were yet to hear confirmation from Rooster, with the last thing he said went along the lines of going after Maverick. 

You held your breath as you heard Admiral Simpson demanded his return. The control room was met with silence, and you knew exactly what he was going to do. 

It was less than 5 minutes when it was confirmed that Lieutenant Bradshaw’s plane had been shot down after attacking an enemy plane. His beacon went dark. 

Lieutenant Seresin requested clearance for take off but was rebuffed by the Air Boss. You had to take everything in you to not shed a tear.

A thick silence fell over the entire ship. The mission was technically a success but you wouldn’t be able to tell based on the solemn look on everyone’s face. 

Even after the remaining daggers returned on the ship, no one wanted to leave the control room. The entire ship was at a standstill. 

That was until a beacon marked “Rooster” started beeping on the screen. 

No it couldn’t be.

“Sir, Rooster has gone supersonic.” You told Admiral Simpson with a gulp, trying to contain your hope. 

“An F-14 tomcat has been spotted sir.” Another ATC announced. 

“Maverick.” You heard someone say, not sure who but you did not care at that point. What’s important is that they were alive!

But it was not time to celebrate just yet. Two bogies were spotted alongside the F-14 Tomcat. And everyone knew this meant a dogfight was about to commence. 

The situation looked more and more grim. An ancient F-14 against Fifth Gens? It was unlikely for the two pilots to make it out unscathed yet alone alive.

But by some grace of God (or possibly Maverick’s unbeatable skill, probably both) they managed to take down two bogies. 

Rooster managed to turn on the plane’s radio to contact the ship. You felt relief which was instantly thwarted by the news that there was still one Fifth Gen, directly in front of the plane. 

You knew they needed help. You looked at Admiral Simpson desperately, hoping that he would allow the Reserve Dagger to go assist. But Cyclone seemed frozen and you knew you had to take matters into your own hands.

“Dagger Reserve, are you ready for liftoff?” You spoke into the mic, the other people in the control room looked at you in shock.

“Finally!” The elated voice of Hangman came through the comms.

Admiral Simpson shot you a hard glare, if only looks could kill, you’d probably be as screwed as Maverick and Rooster. But you knew you had to do something. 

“Yes this is Dagger Reserve asking clearance for takeoff.” 

“Dagger Reserve, you are clear for takeoff. Bring our boys home.” You said with a small smile, if you get fired and discharged, possibly thrown into the ocean it’ll be worth it knowing what you did to save the aviators.

Hangman shot down the Fifth Gen with ease, earning him his second confirmed air combat kill. You knew that the other pilots would never hear the end of it. But all you cared about is he saved HIM.

Rooster’s laugh and banter with Hangman might’ve been the most wonderful sound you’ve ever heard. 

Seeing him on the tarmac reunited with the rest of his team had to be one of the highlights of your career with the Navy, if this was the last moment you had in the branch then you were perfectly content. 

“What you did was reckless insubordination! If there was another fifth Gen out there, we would’ve lost 3 of our best pilots and 2 planes worth millions of dollars!” Admiral Simpson had chastised you. 

“I have half a mind to dishonorably discharge you!” You 're ready to accept your punishment with grace. You were however surprised at his next words 

“But your actions saved 2 of our men.” He added with a gulp.

“You are clear from punishment, but DO NOT make this a habit!”

“Yes sir.” You told him with a steady voice.

“Thank you sir.”

“You are dismissed, go join the rest of the fleet.” He told you.

You ran down to celebrate the returning pilots, but so was everyone else. You could only see a glimpse of Captain Mitchell and Lieutenant Bradshaw past the dozens of bodies approaching to greet them. 

But even from where you were standing you could see the beaming smile and bright eyes of the mustached pilot. And from that exact moment you knew you were a goner.

Tag list under the cut

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#rooster x reader #rooster #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster angst #top gun #top gun maverick #rooster imagine

[finniestoncrane]

Would love to read a part two to the Penguin fic It's Only Make Believe

It's Only Make Believe: Part 2

Farrell!Penguin x Female!Reader, word count: 700 part one here ok can i be very honest? i thought this was total shit garbage and yet you guys liked it and i feel so...touched, like the grinch when his heart grew big lmao so HERE YOU GO my sweet beans 💜 also i can keep going with this if there's demand, i didn't want to make this way longer than the first chapter! request info • prompt list • send me a request • kofi minors DNI!! 🔞 cw for nsfw stuff: angst, pining, lies, fake relationship

It was a mistake to tell the two of them. They were complete idiots after all, only useful to throw around as muscle and threats. Now, Oswald sat at his desk, head in hands, trying hard not to think about them accidentally bringing it up in conversation with her.

Hey the boss has got a crush on you. Yeah he’s just faking the marriage to get you to fall in love with him. Nah he told us himself! Oh yeah it’s a complete lie, ain’t no money in this for you.

“Hey, Mr. Cobblepot…or…Oswald? Or dear? I should come up with a pet name for you if we’re going to convince anyone that we’re married!”

You were never sure if it made him feel uncomfortable for you to reference the fact that you were now legally married, so you always tried to make a joke out of it. He never laughed though, but nerves kept you awkward.

“Ah, sweetheart you don’t gotta go to all that effort.”

“Nonsense! I said I’d help, and I’m nothing if not committed to the bit. How about…hmmm…well if I was really your wife, I think I’d probably call you Pengy, but that’s kinda dumb.”

He finally looked up from his work, slight smile on his face.

“No, I like that. Or…I mean…I could learn to tolerate that, if I was your husband that is.”

“But you are!”

Your warm smile brought one to his lips, not quite as open as yours, but at least he seemed to have perked up a bit.

“I suppose I should also probably get some work done too, though. Can’t get any special treatment just because I’m ‘sleeping with the boss’ huh?” You shot him a smile, trying to emphasise that you were joking, but his smile had faded. He cleared his throat, shuffling some papers on his desk as he avoided your gaze again.

“Yeah, you better do something at least.”

“Oh…Oz-Oswald-Mr. Cobblepot…I’m sorry if that was too…”

“Oh, it’s ok, it ain’t like that, sweetheart. I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”

You shuffled slowly over to his desk, perching on the edge across from him, hand resting on his forearm. He stared at it, following your wrist, your arm, up to your face, looking up at you with a strange emotion behind his eyes that you couldn’t quite place but would have sworn was something akin to deep lament.

“Tell me. I’m here for you. And not just as your pretend wife. As a friend.” You let your thumb draw across his jacket sleeve, back and forth, soothing him, hoping to get him to open up a bit.

“You know, Pengy.” He chuckled softly, leaning back in his chair, easing up slightly. “I’m so grateful for the opportunity, and for the job. I can’t even…it means a lot that you trust me. And…I’ve enjoyed getting to know you. You’re…different to how I thought you would be.”

“How so?”

“You’re sweeter.”

“Oh, you don’t know me well at all, sweetheart. I’m not sweet in the slightest. And to prove it, I’m gonna give you five seconds to get off this desk and start work on that pile of documents over there. Get to it.”

You rolled your eyes, sliding off the desk and walking over to collect the pile, moving to the door to leave for the desk in the hall where you were set up. But you stopped to turn to him.

“I think I do though know you well though. I don’t know…I thought someone so well-established, so charming and handsome might be completely full of himself, but you’re-”

“Handsome?”

You sat silently, looking at him, not sure what he wanted you to say in response.

“When was the last time you got those glasses checked?”

You giggled a little.

“You don’t think you’re handsome?”

“I absolutely do not. And forgive me, sweetheart, but I don’t believe for a second that you think so either.”

His self-effacing attitude was so endearing, such a sweet quality. It made him vulnerable, human. And as you left the office, you let your head stay around the door as you spoke, before disappearing off to get started on work.

“I wouldn’t have married you if I didn’t think you were, Mr. Cobblepot.”

#q #penguin x you #finnie writes #oswald cobblepot #the penguin #batman fanfic #the batman 2022 #colin farrell penguin #oswald cobblepot x reader #oswald cobblepot x you

[kitkatpadywaks]

The Start Of Something New.

Part 9 Of La Mechancete De La Vie.

Warnings: None.

Word Count: 895

A/N: It's Back! I had this chapter in my drafts for months and just finalised it so I could post it. I will finally be writing new chapters for this story for the first time in 7 months- I initially tried to force myself to continue it at the time but instead burnt myself out (hence why this instalment is so short).

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Life's power booms. The surge is felt across the entirety of the universe, every realm and by all beings and people alike. Each entity, from Heaven to Hell, from Time and Night, and their Endless children, feel Life's power. They all look to the source, to the Void, and shiver.

Except for Dream of the Endless, he merely smiles sadly at the familiar feel of his lover, silently wishing her luck in her endeavours, whatever they are.

Life smiles as she walks across a field of lush green grass, brightly lit despite the black Void swirling above it. Her arms extend, and another burst of power explodes from her body, and flowers, plants and trees, never seen in creation, sprout at the edge of the field and expand as far as the eye can see.

The immortal beings of the universe shiver again, wondering, terrified, what Life is up to. 

Destiny looks through his book, finding nothing, much to the irritation of the Kindly Ones, whose conversation Life interrupted with her demonstration of power.

Life laughs with glee, "I did it. I did it!" She jumps around, coming to a stop when she realises she's alone, her mood souring slightly. She ponders on the decisions she has made since her imprisonment, annoyed that, in a way, she's still playing by the rules made by the beings who want to see her fail.

Old habits die hard. Life supposed. But what could she do? Realistically, anything. But at what cost?

She could continue to play by the rules or make her own. Life is leaning towards the latter, as following theirs had already cost her a relationship with the one she loves.

Life freezes, the realisation making her mind race. I love him. Fuck. I love him.

Her mood sours even more as she thinks about how they left things and how to fix them. Though- she supposed she already knew how to fix it. But how much would change? Did she care about the inevitable repercussions she would have to deal with from the Kindly Ones and Destiny?

No, not particularly. 

She feels a strange pull in her being, confusing her until flapping wings reach her ears.

So that's what it feels like when someone enters my realm.

"Hello, Matthew." She lifts her hand slowly, a tree growing from the ground next to her, stopping at her shoulder so the raven will be eye to eye with her when he lands on one of the three branches.

"Hey, Life. How you doin'?"

Life smiles at the raven as he shuffles awkwardly on the branch, eyeing the purple leaves attached to it. "I'm well. What brings you to my realm?"

"Your realm? Is this what all those bursts of power were for? To make your own realm?"

"Yes. Why? What did people think it was?"

"The end of existence."

Life laughs at that, the veins in the purple leaves glowing gold in response to its creator's amusement. Life looks at Matthew fondly, "You didn't answer my question, Matthew. Why are you here?"

"Boss has gone to have dinner with his siblings, and I was bored, so I thought I'd see what you're up to. And I was just wondering when you and the boss will make up." Matthew shuffles around and bows his head, feeling like he overstepped some boundaries. "He's been... upset since you left."

Life hums and clenches her fists, letting a beat of silence sit as she figures out what she wants to say, "I've been somewhat set in my ways, Matthew."

He looks at her confused, wondering where she's going with this, "How'd you mean?"

"I've changed so much over the years, and yet I still... I'm still abiding by rules that don't apply to me. I'm not sure what I'm doing, to be honest."

"What happens if you don't play by the rules?" The raven tilts his head.

"Certain beings will attempt to tell me off." Life smiles in amusement, knowing, as annoying as it would be, it wouldn't make a difference in what she does.

The raven stares at her, "Seems like you already know what you want to do."

Life nods and smiles at him, "I do. You're a good listener, Matthew. You're welcome to stay in my realm as long as you wish."

"Oh, thank you, my Lady." Matthew awkwardly bows, making Life chuckle.

"There's no need for that, Matthew."

"Right, okay, sorry. Oh." 

Life raises an eyebrow at the raven, suddenly understanding what's wrong when she senses a second presence within Matthew. 

"Boss is back." Matthew groans, "And wondering where I am."

The corner of Life's lips tilts up into a small smile, amused and unbothered as she has already blocked Dream's sight of her, allowing Matthew to choose to tell Dream about his visit. 

Matthew sighs, "I should probably go. It was good seeing you, Life."

Life smiles fully this time, "And you, Matthew. You're always welcome in my realm. Visit any time you like."

"T-Thank you."

Matthew flaps his wings and takes to the sky, wanting to leave as quickly as possible so he doesn't have a chance to embarrass himself, knowing full well that if he could blush, he would have.

My realm. Life smiles at the thought, letting her power build once more. What should I add next?

~

Thanks for reading!

#morpheus #morpheus x reader #morpheus x fem!reader #dream #dream x reader #dream of the endless #the sandman #the sandman netflix #morpheus sandman #sandman #sandman netflix #the sandman x fem!reader #the sandman x reader #sandman x reader #sandman x fem!reader #dream x fem!reader #lord morpheus #fanfic

[slapdrawsstuff]

TENNA C. ROOK

*HEY! *WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PIPSQUEAKS DOIN' 'ERE?! *'YER IN THE MIDDLE OF A SET! *WHO ME? *'YER TELLIN' ME YOU DON'T KNOW WHO I AM?! *TENNA. TENNA C. ROOK!

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

Hey! First post here! So! Tenna, right? What a guy! Since everyone's making up designs for him left and right I thought I'd put my hat in the mix as well.

DESIGN CHOICES:

So, well before I begin with the design. The name. Tenna C. Rook. Well, I don't have to explain Tenna, I guess. Rook's there because I'm a firm believer in chess theory, and the C is there because it makes the "rook" look like "crook", because he's a criminal, I tell you, a criminal! Also, if you put the Tenna at the end it spells out CRT, and that's kinda funny.

THE COLORS:

Green! Yeah, I love green! I chose green for two main reasons: -It seems that the main villains are going from right to left on the color bar thingy.

Queen is light blue, so I thought that good old Tenna over here would be green.

-You can't spell GREED without the first four letters of GREEN. Tenna's that type of guy you know? He cares a lot about THE MONEY. Apart from being a big shot producer, he's an avaricious little troll.

Apart from green, there's no real reasoning behind any of the other colors. Red's just there to not make his suit look to same-y, if you catch my drift. White's there to fit in with King and Queen. Also, headcanon that Tenna's like Lancer's uncle or something like that.

THE SUIT:

I think pinstripe suits are the best thing ever. I am a pinstripe suit supremacist. Of course, there's a reason other than my love for these types of suits: mobsters! I think Chapter 3's gonna be like, a look into the Golden Age of Hollywood through Toby Fox' lens. I could be totally wrong here, and to be honest, I'm probably totally in the wrong, but y'know it could be fun. Mobsters + TV is always fun! The square-y shoulder pads on his suit, combined with the hat are supposed to kind of look like the top part of a rook chess piece.

It's probably really stupid, but whatever.

The little antenna on his hat is a thing he uses to control stuff from long distances, by the way. I didn't put it in the dialogue sprites because I tried and it looked ugly.

The T-Belt, T standing for Tenna of course, is there because he's got a company to promote! And he's got a huge ego, so he has to let everyone know who he is!

GENERAL SHAPE, SIZE AND HAIR

I tried to make him really squarish, to contrast with King and Queen since they're both rather round and curvy. Also, like I said, the top part of a rook is square-y so that also influenced his shape, as well as the fact that TV's are generally rectangle/square-like, so yeah.

Sprite-wise he's about the same size as Kris. I thought it'd be funny to go from these pretty tall, imposing villains to this little Wario-like goblin. The size is also inspired by the "really short leader who's really smart but gets angry really quickly" trope. I don't know the name of the trope, but there's Joe Dalton from the Lucky Luke comic strips that made me fall in love with it, so here you go, this one's for you Joe.

The hair. So, I wasn't going to give him hair originally, but I thought it'd be good to not have the head be entirely white with a green hat. I thought of Johnny Depp's Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, because frankly, his hair looked stupid in that movie and I think it's really funny to give characters stupid hair. I can easily imagine Susie mocking him for his stupid hair. Also, technically not his hair. It's a wig, and I think it'd be funny for it to fall off during the final boss fight.

Oh yeah, also the shadowy part covering the eyes is supposed to look like a club, because King's got a spade-like thing going on and Queen has got a heart-like thing going on, so yeah.

All-in-all, I'm pretty proud of how this thing turned out. I saw a lot of tv-heads, lots of big and bulky figures and a Jerma thrown in there for good measure, so I tried to stay as far as possible from those, as to not get too inspired by them.

Anyways, see ya bye!

#deltarune #deltarune fanart #deltarune sprites #deltarune fan art #deltarune fan design #deltarune fan character #tenna #tenna deltarune #deltarune tenna #deltarune chapter 3 tenna #deltarune chapter 3 #deltarune chapter three #deltarune predictions #sprite #pixel art #sprite art #pixel sprite #utdr #utdr oc #utdr fanart #utdr fan art #deltarune tenna design #are these too many hashtags #i dont know #please #help me get somewhere #deltarune villain

[mikka-minns]

Hey Minnie! Hope you don't mind me coming into your inbox to ramble, but I had a realization and a theory that I think you might appreciate.

So, I know we always complain about Dominic as The Guy Who Can't Write MK, and I do think he's part of the problem, but I think the real final boss of Bad MK Writers is Shawn Kittelsen.

He wrote the MKX comic, and is thus responsible for "Cassie was the result of a one night stand and Sonya never loved Johnny before MKX" (which is a bullshit interpretation of their dynamic), Hanzo "Sub-Zero is Beyond Saving Let's Just Leave Him For Dead" Hasashi, and probably other awful shit (oh wait, now I remember. Killing off a bunch of characters unceremoniously, for really no reason other than blood. That's just a shitty use of resources)

He started working on the games in MK11, and I'm pretty fucking sure he's responsible for Kotal/Jade (weird because it has no buildup), past Sonya being an unrepentant bitch (telling the father of your future daughter to get a vasectomy when you know said daughter personally is bitch behavior. As is not reading a mission report all the way through. Sonya is an emotionally repressed soldier, duty comes before everything for her. That's kinda the point of her arc in MKX??? But now she's suddenly incapable of understanding the idea that military service is about duty and sacrifice), the weird sexual threats Shao Kahn dishes out (because what the FUCK NRS? That's never been an aspect of the character before. Forced marriage, yes, but you'll note that he has no offspring of his own. Also, that's just a little much for the tone of MK), and probably the Sindel Retcon.

I have no idea what we're getting at, other than "Dominic is semi competent at writing" and "Shawn might just be on par with Stephen King, but only if you're comparing his writing to the sewer scene in IT."

Dont worry, i dont mind at all! I do appreciate this!☺️

And yeah, Shawn is apsolutley to blame as well. I think that the whole NRS writing team hates the franchise tbh(not the whole, but the Ones who write the most important stuff for the games and media). I did hear he was one of the main writters for mk11.

You are right tho, his interpretation of the characters that he did in the comics is pretty much what is ruining them the most(before mk11 ofc). I first found mkx the game and then the comics and without the knowlage of what comic!Hanzo did, i Just Kinda Thought he was Just a vengfull ass, but then the comics are what made me hate him.

I realy want to know what all of these mfs are smoking, cuz it doesnt seem like its good for them.

I also heard that mkx the game and mkx the comic were in production at the same time, so whoever was in charge of making sure they are on the same Page didnt do a good job, since the comics are not even complitely Canon at the end. Mostly cuz they didnt fit in with the game's narative and the characters were off(even they noticed, but a little too late). The "Cassie is a product of a one night stand" is one of them, cuz, in the game, some of the dialogue seems to indicate that Sonya was realy in love with Johnny and they only divorced later cuz of their marriage problems.

Some of their choices for mk11 are just disturbing. Someone Thought of that and actualy presented it and then someone ALLOWED it!

And Ed Boon seems to not give a flying f about what people do to the franchise he has built. Just stands around and hopes it makes him money.

In advance, i apologize if i ended up a bit biased and its complitely alright and understandable if Someone disagrees with me. I am in no way a profesional and probably just letting my emotions do all talking. (imma be honest, im mostly mad cuz the torture Kuai and then make him the bad guy or imply his life is easy)

#Mortal kombat #Mortal kombat x #Mkx comics