#you can go into the cat section of a shelter

[esleep]

i actually do kinda like delivering groceries on the side because it gives me such a unique cross-section of the community. i never know whose groceries im shopping for until i finish the delivery and see them/their home and it's like it adds more detail to the picture of who they are. the baby supplies going to the apartment that i know for a fact is one bedroom (they'll be moving soon - i bet they're apartment hunting, i hope they find a place). the new cat litter box, bowl, and kitten food going to the house covered in "i <3 my dog" paraphernalia (a kitten definitely showed up on the porch recently and made itself at home). the fairly healthy boring grocery order that includes an incongruous tub of candy-filled ice cream going to the home of an elderly woman with toddler toys in the yard (it's clearly for her grandkids, whom she sees often).

shopping for someone else's groceries is a fairly intimate thing. i've bought condoms and pregnancy tests, allergy medicine and nyquil, baby benadryl and teething gel, a huge pile of veggies paired with an equally huge pile of junk food, tampons and shampoo and closet organizers and ant traps and deodorizing shoe inserts and a million other little things that tell a million different stories in their endless combinations. one time someone had me buy one single green bean. i messaged them to confirm that's actually what they wanted, and they said yes - neither of them liked green beans very much, but they had a baby they were introducing to solid foods, and they wanted to let him try one to see if he liked them. another time i had someone request 50 fresh roma tomatoes - not for a restaurant, but for a person in an apartment. the kitchen behind them smelled like basil and garlic when they opened the door. another time i brought groceries to three elderly blind women who share a house. that was one of the few times i have ever broken my rule and gone inside a place i've delivered to, because they asked if i could place the grocery bags in a specific location in the kitchen for them to work on unloading and there was no way i was going to refuse helping.

i gripe about the poor tippers, but people can also be incredibly kind. one time i took shelter from a sudden vicious hailstorm inside an older lady's home in a trailer park, while i was in the middle of delivering her groceries. we both huddled just inside the door, watching in shock as golf-ball-sized hail swept through for about five minutes and then disappeared. she handed me an extra $10 bill on my way out the door.

when covid was at its deadliest, people would leave extra (often lysol-scented) cash tips and thank-you notes for me taped to the door or partially under the mat. i especially loved the clearly kid-drawn thank you notes with marker renderings of blobby people in masks, or trees, or rainbows. in summer of 2020 i delivered to a nice older couple who lived outside of town in the hills, and they insisted i take a huge double handful of extra disposable gloves and masks to wear while shopping - those were hard to find in stores at the time, but they wanted me to have some of their supply and wouldn't take no for an answer.

anyway. all this to say people are mostly good, or at least trying to be, despite my complaints.

#long post

[55sturn]

hi, may i please request a fic abt Chris adopting a little animal? any kind of animal is fine. thank you

.𖥔 ݁ ˖ WELCOME HOME!

↳ masterlist!

↳ summary: in which chris and his girlfriend, y/n, decided to adopt a cat from a nearby pet shelter!

↳ pairings: chris sturniolo x fem!reader

↳ warnings: none aside from swearing! total fluff!

THIRD PERSON POV

chris and y/n had began to feel like their apartment was rather…empty. it was just the two of them for the most part, side from the revolving door of friends and family that were constantly in and out.

but when the sky was dusted with specks of dusk and nightfall, the stars starting peak through, and it was just the two of them cuddled up on the couch, it felt lonely. like something was missing.

so when y/n proposed the idea of getting a pet, chris was ecstatic. and so began the hunt for the perfect pet for the two of them. they wanted one that fit their personalities and dynamic, although they’d be completely content with a senior pet too, making a happy home for the animal to live the rest of its life in.

as the couple walked toward the shelters door, the two of them were sort of nervous but ultimately excited. y/n was cherishing the domesticity of it all. there was something about adopting a pet with the person you love that felt so incredibly warm and comfortable.

“i want an orange cat.” chris giggled, swinging his and y/n’s interlocked hands between their bodies.

“of course you do, i wouldn’t expect you to want any other type of cat or pet. well maybe i’d expect you to want something insane like a baby rhino or a full grown giraffe.” y/n laughed, watching as chris’ eye sparkled with mischief at the idea of having an unusual pet.

“a baby rhino as a pet would be sick as fuck. completely fucked up but sick as fuck as like a guard animal or whatever.” chris joked as they reached the front entrance.

“i would be terrified of it.” she giggled, walking through the door as chris held it open for her, they were happily greeted by an older dog that wandered around the front.

the two sat with him, petting him and kissing his head as chris talked about how much the older dog made him miss trevor who was back home with his parents.

the two walked through the aisles of the shelter, soon approaching the door that led to the kennel area. chris pulled it open, walking through and holding it open for y/n before lacing his fingers through hers.

“do you think a dog would be too high maintenance for us right now?” y/n hummed, her head resting against chris’ biceps as they stood and watched the dogs sit excitedly in their kennels.

“yeah i think so, i think if we were to get a dog, it’d have to be a more chill breed or an older dog that just needs love and attention y’know?”

“yeah.”

they continued their walk-through, interacting with as many of the dogs as they could before turning and following the walkway to the section where the cats were kept. as they meandered through, laughing as some of the cats asked for their attention while others looked at them, cocked their heads before going back to whatever they were doing.

y/n was about to turn back to the dogs, thinking they would get away with an older one, when an orange cat meowed and stuck its paw through the metal gate. crouching down she peered into the kennel, finding the six month old kitten excitedly clawing at the gate.

“chris come here.” y/n giggled, sticking her finger through one of the spaces and watching as the kitten nuzzled her finger.

“oh my god he’s so cute.” chris cooed, copying his girlfriend’s actions and petting the cat. the two played with the kitten through the gate until a worker stumbled across them.

“would you guys like to take him out of his kennel?”

“we were actually wondering if we could adopt him?”

“yeah, of course! i’ll just take him out of the kennel so you can hold him and we’ll bring him up to the front!” the lady smiled, handing the couple the kitten before grabbing his registration card out the holder underneath the kennel.

chris smiled as he watch his girlfriend cradle the kitten as if it were a human baby, laughing as she cooed and whispered at him, petting his head, watching as the kitten began loudly purring as she scratched beneath his chin.

“what do you wanna name him?” chris hummed against the side of her head as he slung his arm over her shoulders, the two of them following lazily behind the worker as she led them toward the front counter.

“torn between gizmo and charlie.”

“gizmo’s kind of cute and charlie is lowkey basic.” chris laughed making y/n roll her eyes as she set gizmo down on the front counter, while the worker grabbed the couple a bed? a set of dishes, a pink collar which made y/n laugh, and a few toys along with a bag of food.

after paying certain fees and for the few supplies that didn’t come free with the adoption, the couple walked out with the newest addition to their family. gizmo sat calmly in y/n’s lap as she looped the breakaway collar around his neck after adjusting it to the proper size. chris smiled as y/n happily fussed over the tiny baby sitting in her lap.

as the two brought their cat up to their apartment, y/n sighed and smiled as she spoke,

“welcome home giz!”

↳ taglist: @im-a-matt-girl @dylsdunbar @soursturniolo @4sturns @sturnsclutter @spencerstits @meanttomeet @bluesturniolo333 @graciereid @abbie13sworld @ghostofbrock @l9vesick @mylifeisevenstranger @bethsturn @ifilwtmfc @verosivy

© 55STURN 2023 [ you do not have permission to copy or save or share my work to other platforms and devices! ]

#chris sturniolo #chris sturniolo x reader #christopher sturniolo #christopher sturniolo x reader #chris sturniolo x fem reader #christopher sturniolo x fem reader #sturniolo triplets #sturniolo triplets x reader #sturniolo triplets x fem reader

[milgram-tournament]

MILGRAM Best Song Tournament, Round 2, Match 5 I LOVE YOU vs. CAT

Propaganda for both options under the cut!

Propaganda for I LOVE YOU:

mappi’s spitting bars 🔥🔥🔥🗣️🗣️🗣️

ok but i, as the iloveyoucountdown person before it released, waited 89 days for ily and SHE DID NOT DISAPPOINT‼️‼️‼️🗣️🗣️🗣️🔥🔥🔥 go vote ily now bc its peak music

---

the acoustic section where it just feels so raw and emotional it's crazy also we love to see mappi/miho okasaki rapping again and good lord mahiru delivered hadauwd, like you think about it a lot? like "Ishokujuu plus ai Miss you Raishuu aemasuka no Cadence Yurusarenai ikigai mou iki mo dekinai" it's also so catchy just "Dai- dai- dai- datte suki suki! Dai- dai- dai- datte daisuki."

it's such a quick song but it delivers and it DELIVERS WELL there's so much in the instrumental you can also miss, like sirens and such! again guitar section it's crazy!! i didn't even touch on the visuals, like the visuals are absolutely amazing and really touch on the toxic cycle of mahiru's relationship for example, the carousel turning into a forest! and also they were still able to implement some of tihtbilwy in the beginning of the song! we got to see mahiru's boyfriend as well!! additionally, RATS AND CAKE. HOLY SHIT we all know the absolute shock that appeared on everyone's faces the second that cake turned into a rat (to be honest, I was absolutely sick with shock for the rest of the day) It's really amazing as a song and MV, plus it did help give some more information on Mahiru!

---

miho okasaki's vocals are so powerful. it sounds like mahiru is screaming because of not being forgiven and because of what happened to her boyfriend and because "she can't just do it right".

THE LYRICS ARE SO. "clothes food shelter + love and miss you"?? "my lethal weapon is how to be in love with you"?? "kiss goodbye to this feeling cuz it's too heavy"?? again, the "why can't i just do it right" line?? SO GOOD.

MAHIRU RAPPING. THIS SONG STARTS WITH HER RAPPING. LITERAL CHILLS

i've heard the i love you chorus once and now it's in my head forever. i wake up, i sing the i love you chorus. i go to sleep, i sing the i love you chorus.

the lyrics are so sad when you start thinking about them more. "saying i love you but doing what i did, i know i have no right, crossed and covered in sin"?? please, don't you want to give mappi a hug. please she deserves it. she needs it

the "DIE-suki" pun.

the mv is so. i can talk about it for hours. it literally starts with showing us what happened to her bf. i've watched it live, i knew about this part and i still was shocked. mahiru's boyfriend is dead. mahiru is also rapping. also, the lyrics. this scene is terrifying to me and i mean it in the best way possible.

the cake symbolism. mahiru refusing to accept her reality and the true nature of her relationship with her bf and still seeing everything around her as cute and soft and pink. her feeling guilty and not knowing how to express love properly and still choosing to continue to love in this way. i don't know, something about it is so.. it's so sad and so realistic and so heartbreaking

i love how we can say so much about her relationship with her boyfriend based on mv and the lyrics. this is more of a theory and i probably shouldn't talk about it but i like the fact that mappi and her bf's relationship wasn't just abusive or one-sided love or anything like that. it's like they loved each other, they just.. didn't know how to show it or express it in a healthy way (or maybe mahiru's bf did know, but he was okay with going through all of this for her). like this scene when they're both riding the carousel and looking happy at first and even when both of them look like a mess, mahiru's face expression is still pretty much the same while her boyfriend looks much more tired, but he's still smiling. something about that part breaks me.

the instrumental is so fun and chaotic and creepy please listen to it. all milgram instrumentals are great but ily instrumental is definitely one of my fav ones.

Propaganda for CAT:

"You like jazz? Jazz is chaos within order. Got to love the whole band. Vibraphone, saxophone, trumpet, flute, piano, guitar, drums, bass… Go, rhythm section, go! The song sounds tender at times and aggressive at others as different instruments pop up at different times. Sometimes they follow Kazui’s voice (“follow the king of the masquerade”). Sometimes they get to be the focus. You have the chill piano one moment and the screaming guitar in the next.

You’ve got a lovely “jingle” (“Lie until it gets better…”) which occurs at the beginning, middle, and end. It fits the “newspaper ad” style of the video really well. Also at the very end, there’s one more line that gives the jingle an upward contour, giving a sense of finality. “Until you can meet the king of the masquerade.” You’re there now.

The two verses start off differently before they take on a similar melody. It feels like Kazui is talking to a different person in each verse.

The chorus is a beautiful façade the first time and a sinister truth the second time.

The opening for solos shows that this jazz song means business. I love how the saxophone and trumpet especially get in your face. And with the tacet on vocals, the walking bass really shines if you lend it your ear.

And the smoke break! Silence is golden. Glass click. Lighter. Huff.

As always, Kazui’s voice is super deep. He hits even lower notes this time around. He’s a fifth lower than the next lowest singers (Haruka and Shidou)."

---

-Great instrumental choice. Kazui and jazz is *chefs kiss*

-Symbolism. THE SYMBOLISM. I can’t type out all my thoughts but ifykyk

-The almost comic like style of the MV is really appealing.

-Lyrics!! There is so much to unpack but it’s really cool.

-Kazui eating the dove… fricken iconic.

---

FIRST OF ALL the vocals????? BEAUTIFUL. His va put his whole pussy into this song and you can tell!! The way he sings the chorus is so damn addicting I'm so in love with him. His voice is more or less stable throughout the entire thing until the final chorus but you can hear the emotion peaking out which fits perfectly with Kazui keeping everything hidden. The way his voice turns into a sort of whisper during "all the things I wanna do that I can't say outloud"??? The way his voice starts trembling during "this feeling it's yearning to be satisfied"???? The way his voice turns into a sort of whisper AND starts trembling during "hey, if I said I liked-liked you, what would you?"?????? HEAVENLY! You can really feel how afraid Kazui is under his disguise and my heart breaks a little everytime I listen. Not to mention how absolutely powerful his voice gets at the climax!!!!!! It's insane!!!!!!! It's genius!!!!!! It makes me wild makes me crazy makes me eat my walls!!!!!!!!!!

THE SMOKE BREAK?????? What other song has something as powerful as that huh???? This isn't just a song produced by the milgram machine using his memories, this is HIS song and he is OWNING IT! The music builds up so much and gets so intense right before it, I can literally feel myself get tense and starting holding my breath right before he takes the break and everything relaxs… it's not just a break for him, but a break for the viewer. The song is spiralling out of control just like his life and his lies and he has no choice but to put it to a quick stop before its too much to handle.

THE IMAGERY IS WILD!!!!! He's a magician!!! Little magic guy!!!! Using tricks and lies to amaze and captivate the people around him! Trying desperately to magic his own feelings into something else! But it's all fake! It's all tricks and no matter how hard he tries he can never actually change himself into what he wants! But he's trying to convince himself the same way he's convinced his audience!! And when you're watching a magic act, are you there for the magician themself or are you there to watch the show?? The people in his life only cared for him when he performed for them, but they didn't give a drop of love to who he was a person! ALSO the transformation of the wedding ring to a cigarette to the dove at the end??? Makes me wild every single time! Right infront of his wife, he showed her that their marriage was something unhealthy for him that was slowly killing him from the inside. AND THEN he uses it to harm himself???? And then he turns that cigarette into a dove- a representation of love and literally TEARS INTO IT. He tears his marriage apart with his mouth!!! AKA HIS WORDS. makes me wild. Also fun fact Kazui says he started smoking because when he was younger it was "just natural for everyone to smoke" and that lines up with his reasons for marriage perfectly.

Kazui looks really hot in it. You should vote for Cat because Kazui is insanely attractive. What other reason do you need huh? Hot gay middle aged man.

#milgramtournament #milgram #mahiru shiina #shiina mahiru #kazui mukuhara #mukuhara kazui

[jungle-angel]

Like An Open Book (Bob Floyd x Reader)

Summary: You and Bob not only make great partners at school, but also at home

Warnings: SMUT!!!! All 18+ warnings apply

Tagging: @bobfloydsbabe

"Damnit Pumpkin!" Bob swore when he heard the meow of the black cat squirming happily in the pile of sticky notes on the old wooden desk. "How many times do I have to tell you! Out!! Out I say!"

With a rather cheeky little meow, Pumpkin leapt off the desk, her black form slinking out of the library and into the living room.

"Cat's at it again I presume?" you chuckled, making your way in.

"I knew she was trouble when we brought her and her mate home as kittens from the shelter," Bob answered. "I dunno what it is with my desk (y/n), she rolls on it like it's catnip."

"Well, it might also be the essential oil spray we use in here but....."

Bob rolled his eyes, opening up one of the books to the place he had marked. "Oh....." he said, raising his eyebrows. "Oh-ho, what have we here now?"

You scrunched your eyebrows together as Bob turned the book around and showed you the rather erotic illustration, no doubt from a book on ancient tantric sex.

"BOB!" you gasped, clamping a hand over your mouth.

"Oh honey believe me I've got a whole shelf of sin sitting right in front of you," Bob chuckled.

You took one good look at the messily stacked shelf in front of you, your jaw dropping at the titles in front of you, unable to stop yourself from pulling the book off the shelf.

"Oh that's a good one," Bob pointed out. "I heard it was banned in France and England."

You laughed a little but upon reading it you could see why. "Oh.....oh.....OH SHIT!" you blurted out. "Ok now I see why."

Bob laughed again.

Quickly you shoved the book back onto the shelf as though it had burned your hand. The burn in your cheeks was enough to make Bob unable to resist kissing them, the way they ran warm against his lips and made his own go pink.

"Aw c'mon Mrs. Floyd," he purred. "Can't have a library without the erotica section can we?"

You laughed a little but felt a moan beginning to come up in your throat as he nipped at your pulse point and down to where your neck and shoulder met. You tried to stop it from escaping, but it was no use.

"Shhhh, sweetpea it's ok," Bob whispered in your ear, gently kissing the soft little spot near your lobe. "Nobody's around to hear us except the cats."

You felt his hands creeping up the front of your shirt as your kissing intensified, never once breaking as Bob warmed his hands on your sides, feeling their way to your lower back and stomach. God it was heaven, his touch warm like the beginnings of a fire and the lingering taste of cinnamon, nutmeg and hazelnut on his tongue from his morning coffee.

Bob let out a breathy moan as he pulled your hips closer to his. You didn't let go of him at all, his kissing deepening as you felt the hardness growing in his jeans.

"Off," you whispered.

"What?" Bob replied.

"Pants off," you told him. "I need you."

You felt Bob smiling into the kiss as you began reaching down, lower and lower, the clink of his belt loosening, the snap of the button and the sound of his zipper being lowered nearly drove him over the edge. Bob flung one of your legs across his hip, his pants half off as you began undoing the buttons on his favorite blue shirt.

He laid you right down on the rug, rutting against you just a little bit as he began helping you off with your clothes, first your shirt, then your jeans until you were in nothing but your bra and underwear.

"You really know how to drive me crazy don't you Mrs. Floyd?" Bob purred, holding your arms above your head and kissing down your neck.

A more audible moan fell from your mouth as he buried his face in your chest, digging his hips deeper into you, his cock still imprisoned behind the threads of his grey boxers.

"Wanna dig my cock into you so bad Mrs. Floyd," he moaned. "I'm all hot and hard."

God he would have driven you over the edge with that one, even as he kissed your stomach, nipping at the sensitive area around your navel. You moved your hips up just a little as he began running his tongue through your folds and along the edge of your thin panties.

You shuddered as you felt Bob's teeth around your panties, slowly pulling them off and spitting them out into his hand. "Oh God sweetheart, you're wet for me already," he chuckled.

"Just for you Bob," you moaned.

Bob chuckled as he buried his face in your soaked pussy, drawing one moan after another out of you before he couldn't take it anymore, slipping off his boxers before slowly sliding himself inside you.

"Bob," you moaned at the sudden heat entering between your legs. "Bob, sweetie....."

"Shhhh, sweetheart it's ok," Bob assured you. "It's ok......that's it.....that's it.....oh baby, you're taking me so well."

It hurt just a little, but that was because he was so big, stretching your walls in ways you never thought possible as he lay on top of you, pressing both of you against the rug and drawing out your orgasm for as long as you both could possibly go.

"Can't imagine what it'll be like when it takes," Bob mumbled against your skin. "What it'll be like to feel that little baby in your tummy, rolling over and all curled up inside you.... watching you grow and your body change......"

You felt yourself gasping and gushing onto his cock with Bob not too far behind you as a hot rush of liquid burst up between your legs. He sat you up in his lap so that you were pressed against each other, his breath evening out with yours. You swore you could feel Bob's heart beating wildly in his chest, his skin hot against your own as he rested his head between your boobs.

"Baby?" he mumbled.

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

You laughed a little as you began playing with and kissing his hair.

"So warm too," he mumbled again. "Wanna warm my cock in you all night long."

You didn't mind the cockwarming at all. The library was warm as hell, making the heavy snowfall outside just a little more bearable.

"C'mon Bob," you chuckled softly. "I think we need to get back to business."

"But I wanna make sure it takes," he said, pretending to whine.

You laughed again. "Bob, when it takes, it will take," you promised him. "Do you want a nap before we get back to work?"

You felt him nod before you rose up off his cock and made your way to the living room, throwing a few logs into the fireplace before lighting it and making a makeshift bed on the floor of all the pillows, cushions and blankets you could gather. You and Bob snuggled in with each other, your gentle little touches, kissing and caressing making you both ready for another round.

#top gun maverick #robert bob floyd #teacher!bob #teacher!bob x teacher!reader #teacher!bob floyd

[hugsandchaos]

Behold, I’ve brought you all more fluff!! And with a little twist!

“But I’m not... yawn... sleepy yet.” Cyn said. N couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the fact that she yawned while trying to deny being tired. He continued down the hallway, which was thankfully empty of worker drones and humans, and smiled to himself.”Sure, little buddy.” He said. He may not know a lot about worker drones, but he knows for a fact that they need to sleep, especially young dronelings like Cyn. He walked into the library and began searching for the restricted section.

In the restricted section, there was a small basement that N had somewhat claimed as his space. Well, it was more of a space for Cyn than himself, but no one was using it until he came along.”Yawn.” Cyn said again. She was trying to keep her eyes open as N walked through the darkened halls, but it was getting harder to do so. It was 8:48 at night, and the sun had gone down around 5 since it was winter. Since N adopted Cyn just over two years ago and became her big brother, he tried his best to change his sleep schedule so he’d be more available during the day, but Cyn ended up basically trying to do the same thing by staying awake at night. She never made it past 9PM.

As he neared the “kid’s books” section, which was right next to the restricted section, he slowed down and glanced at the shelves filled with books.”Want to grab a book for a bedtime story?” He asked. Cyn rested her head against her big brother’s chest and eyes were almost closed, but she was still trying her best to stay awake.”Yes, please.” She said, her voice box volume dropped down to a mumble. N made a turn and looked over the many book spines. The books were pretty thin, so it was sometimes easy to miss certain ones.”Do you have one in mind?” He asked.

“Cat in the Hat.” Cyn replied. N quickly found it and used his tail to very carefully tip the book over, then caught it when it fell.”Done.” He said. He turned around and left the kid’s section, walking around the shelves and entering the restricted section.

The restricted section was the darkest place in the library, even during the day, but N could see pretty well in the dark thanks to his programming. Plus, he had memorized where exactly it was after spending a few months hiding in the manor to get better shelter for Cyn, so he found the trapdoor with no problem. N stopped in front of it and lifted his tail up so he could hold the book just above Cyn.”Think you can hold this for me?” He asked. His little sister moved her arms a bit and N carefully set it down in her arms so she could hold it.”Thank you.” He whispered. He was then able to use he tail to wrap around the trapdoor handle and lift it up.

This next part was a little tricky.

Ignoring the ladder — since it’d be even more difficult —, N hopped into the trapdoor and swiftly let go of it with his tail, letting it fall back into place right after he disappeared into the basement. He successfully landed on his feet and looked down at Cyn. She had decided to put on her pjs earlier since they were comfortable and warm, so he wouldn’t have to keep her awake longer for her to get changed. He looked back up after making sure she wasn’t disturbed too much by the short drop, his eyes immediately landing on the other side of the room.

On the other side, the room had a shape lined with blankets and pillows he had taken from a room full of spare bedding, along with an old green snake “squishmallow” plushie he also found outside, that was built as a sort of nest for the small droneling falling asleep in his arms. A bed-nest, one might call it. There wasn’t much room for N to hang upside down when he slept, or in the bed-nest for both him and Cyn, so he usually just slept on the floor outside the nest. He walked over to the bed-nest and set Cyn down in it. She patted one of her hands around until she found her snake plushie and pulled it closer while N grabbed the book from her and one of the blankets that weren’t used for the construction of the nest itself to tuck her in.”There, comfy?” He asked, sitting down outside the bed-nest.

“Comfy.” Cyn confirmed quietly. N smiled and opened the book to begin reading to her.”The cat in a hat…”

It didn’t take long for Cyn to fall asleep, she was halfway asleep on the way there. N closed the book and set it down next to himself as he turned to face the entrance of the small basement, just incase someone suddenly opened it and he’d have to fight. As the seconds turned to minutes, N soon began to think about what he should do tomorrow if something happened.

Taking care of a worker droneling was a bit more than N had expected. In the past, he was trained to take care of his squadron incase they had gotten injured. He had been taught to keep watch for signs of danger while they rest. These skills weren’t exactly well suited for becoming a big brother, but he was prepared to learn how to best provide for Cyn considering that worker drones don’t need to drink oil and actually eat things sometimes, like batteries. On top of that, worker drones had weaker metal than disassembly drones, especially as dronelings, so he started permanently borrowing the blankets and pillows used to make the nest to avoid her from getting any pains that would make moving her limbs more difficult for her.

However, something N hadn’t taken account for was how much Cyn needed him to be there emotionally. How much she would want to play with him, how much she wanted to talk to him, but he was always happy to do so. Even when he was tired and wanted so badly to just take a short nap. Overall, it was a big change in N’s life, but he wouldn’t give her up for the world. He was going to protect her and stick around as long as he could, and no one would ever change his mind.

There wasn’t a clock in the basement, and N didn’t have an internal clock like worker drones, so he didn’t realize how much time had passed. It was now 11:34 at night, way past the time he’s been trying to fall asleep at, but at least he was starting to fall asleep. He was laying down on his belly with his arms crossed in front of his head as makeshift pillows, his tail laying slightly curled up on the floor next to him. Both of his wings rested outside of their hatches, but they were still folded so they wouldn’t take up too much space.

N was getting closer to falling asleep when he felt a small tug on his coat.”Tugging.” A familiar voice said. He was quickly snapped back to wakefulness and began worrying about what could be wrong.

He sat up and turned around to see Cyn awake and on the verge of tears. She was clutching her snake plushie the best she could with one hand. N immediately knew what this might be and turned around fully just as Cyn spoke.“You’re not going to leave me alone, right? Like mom and dad did?” She asked. N’s eyes widened and he shook his head. The first time he heard that question, it was like his core shattered like glass. He was almost too shocked by the question to answer, so for a few seconds, all he did was hug her while formulating a verbal response. That’s not saying it still didn’t make him want to hold her and swear on his life that he wouldn’t do that.“No, of course not.” He replied, making sure to keep his voice down to a whisper. Cyn mumbled the word “sniffle” and used her free hand to try to get rid of the digital tears.“Do you want a hug?” N asked. Cyn nodded and mumbled the word “nod”, dropping her snake plushie and letting it tumble into the nest. N wrapped both arms around her and pulled her close.

He remembered that night as well as Cyn did. It was a big turning point in both their lives, especially since he saved her’s. If only her negative emotions were in the form of a physical creature, then N could put an end to his little sister’s suffering once and for all.“It was so cold. The darkness was so scary.” Cyn said quietly. N lifted one of his hands up to pat her on the head in a reassuring gesture.“I know, but you don’t have to worry about it anymore. I’ll never abandon you.” He said, repeating the promise he’s told her time and time again whenever she thought otherwise.”I know. Sniffle. Thank you, big brother N.” She said. N smiled a bit. Looks like the hug did the trick.”Anytime, little buddy. And if you have another nightmare, I’ll still be here.” He added.

Cyn pulled away from the hug and smiled a bit.”Okay. I think I can go back to sleep.” She said. N let her crawl back into the bed-nest and was about to turn back around, but stopped when she said “It’s cold”. He looked for the blanket and quickly found that Cyn was already trying to get warm underneath it with her snake plushie. He looked to the side of the bed-nest for the other two blankets and picked them up to pile them on top of Cyn. He made sure to sneak in a few small pokes at her belly to make her giggle a little and lift her spirits before she would return to slumber.“Warm enough?” He asked.

“No. I’m still a little cold.” Cyn replied. N hummed and made a thoughtful expression, one that he knew looked a little goofy. Cyn giggled again at the look on his face.”Big problems require big solutions.” He said.

“Or big hugs?” Cyn suggested. Now who was N to argue with that?”If that’ll help you sleep better, then sure.” He agreed. He lifted the extra two blankets off her and picked her up so he could sit down in the bed-nest with his back leaned behind him. Then he let the droneling lay on top of him with his arms wrapped gently around her.”Goodnight.” He said.

“Goodnight.” Cyn mumbled, making sure the one blanket was still over her.

N lifted his wings and wrapped them around himself, making a sort of extra blanket over Cyn. He knew he wasn’t the softest thing, but he definitely was one of the warmest, so times when Cyn would wake up from a bad dream and try to sleep with him in the winter for safety and warmth wasn’t uncommon. Even though the three blankets actually did make her feel warmer. Listening to the continuous humming of his core, she was instantly reminded of how much N helped her. She remembered when he scooped her up from the snow when he first found her, when he would comfort her during awful, loud storms, when he would pick her up and run away from any intruder after “taking care of them” as he put it, and all the times he would walk seemingly forever while carrying her in the middle of the night in search of shelter and supplies for them. The humming that was always a bit louder and faster than a worker drone was the sound of safety now. Cyn closed her eyes and held the snake plushie close to herself as she began to drift back to sleep.

N waited until he was sure Cyn was asleep to close his eyes again. He listened carefully for any sound of footsteps, but heard nothing except his little sister sleeping peacefully again. He soon found himself falling asleep as well, but he had stayed awake and kept watch long enough. Besides, he was a light sleeper. He’d wake up if anything happened. For now, N would take a break from the constant vigilance he tried to maintain whenever he could and get some sleep.

#au #murder drones #murder drones n #murder drones cyn #big brother n #little sister cyn #murder drones serial designation n #serial designation n #droneling cyn #md n #md serial designation n #little cyn #md little cyn #murder drones little cyn

[sariahsue]

Let Me Count the Ways

Chapter Ten - Movie Date

[Ch 1] [Ch 2] [Ch 3] [Ch 4] [Ch 5] [Ch 6] [Ch 7] [Ch 8] [Ch 9]

Adrien was in a foul mood by the time patrol rolled around.

He hadn't slept well, which made his early morning photo shoot and the punishing akuma that followed all the more grueling. That didn't even count the math test he was sure he'd bombed, plus the ton of homework he needed to do over the weekend. Who knew if he would even finish it all? Another long shoot was scheduled for tomorrow, and Hawk Moth would probably send extra akumas just to spite him. His mood was so bad that he wasn't even excited about patrol, but he hauled his sorry self out his window and trudged across the rooftops anyway.

When he was just two blocks away from their meeting place, Ladybug sent him a text on his baton. He checked it more for the excuse to stop than the desire to see what she said.

The message read simply: Bring the blanket.

He shoved the baton roughly back to its spot and turned around, bristling at the terse order. With his luck today, she wanted him to return it.

Stomping all the way back to his house, he yanked back the duvet and revealed the blanket, which he wadded up in his arms, leaving the bed unmade. He didn't feel like putting in the effort to make it look nice for no one.

It only took a few minutes until he was close enough to see their meeting location. A flat section of roof sheltered on one side by a taller portion of the building. Ladybug was kneeling there, in the middle of a pink blanket and taking something out of a bag. A few jumps closer, and he could smell the chocolate and sugar.

"Cookies?" he asked when he landed next to her.

"Sorry for making you turn around." She stood, holding the overflowing plate out to him. "I needed more time to set up and panicked."

He stared at the plate, hands still full of crumpled blanket. Ladyfingers and lemon cookies and macarons and lots of ganache drizzled over everything.

"Oh," she said. "Here." She shifted the plate to one hand and grabbed the blanket from him so they could switch. Then she turned back to her setup. At the head of her pink blanket, leaning against the brick wall, was a giant black pillow. It was shaped like a cat's head, with large ears and a hand-stitched face made with green thread.

Ladybug shook out his black blanket, folded it in half and sat with it across her lap. "Well, if you're not going to eat them, can you bring them over here?" She patted the spot next to her.

Did she make the pillow like she had his blanket? It matched the color scheme. The cloth looked like the same type. He put the cookies between them and sat down, only to have her immediately pick up the plate and slide in close to him.

He really loved the blanket she'd given him, and how cuddly she was whenever she and it were both near him. He barely managed to stop himself from leaning into her warmth. To distract himself he asked, "Did you make the pillow, too?"

"Yup, finished it last night. It's for you. Isn't it cute?"

His voice felt suddenly too heavy to use, so he just nodded.

Balancing the plate of cookies on her knees, she pulled out her phone. "You seemed upset this morning, and I wanted to cheer you up. So, movie night?"

Huh. Some time between his arrival and now, she'd managed to clear his bad feelings without trying, and he hadn't even noticed. "Sounds good," he said.

"You want to talk about it?" Her hand hovered over the screen.

His mouth twitched. He did want to. "Can't. It's mostly what I've been doing all day."

Ladybug chewed the inside of her cheek, like she was actually… considering? But she shrugged, and the moment passed, and the faint sound of opening music spread out over the silence between them.

After thirty minutes, Chat Noir wasn't sure what movie they were watching, even though he'd been staring at the screen for all he was worth.

Because Ladybug was touching his hand.

It had started out so slowly that he'd thought it was accidental, just a light brush of her fingers against his wrist, so he dutifully moved his hand out of the way (but still close enough for it to happen again - just in case).

And it did happen again. After just a few minutes, the edge of her hand slid right up against his.

He frowned at the screen, unseeing. She'd been doing a lot of touching like this lately. He'd thought it was unconscious at first, but there had just been too much - it had to be on purpose.

He just couldn't figure out why. His Lady was many things, and indecisive was not one of them. If she wanted to hold his hand (or do anything else), they would be doing it already. And she wasn't coy either. She wouldn't be playing with him. So what was she doing?

Ladybug's hand started to move again. An explosion on the tiny phone screen was nothing compared to the explosions that were happening in Chat Noir's brain as she started mindlessly playing with the tips of his fingers and stroking his knuckles.

Every muscle in his arm clenched with the effort of holding still. He shouldn't react. She might pull away if he did. So he chanted don't, don't, don't as he imagined grabbing her hand and kissing it, the back of it, the palm, every fingertip and knuckle, dragging his lips around her wrist, and up to the soft hollow of her elbow, and higher and higher until he reached her mouth.

But he kept himself very still, not even a twitch, until his arm ached with the effort, and she finally pulled her hand away.

---

Author’s note: The next chapter will probably be the longest one. :)

Tag list: @clawsout83 @trippingovermyfeet @tbehartoo @yoonjae20 @random-cartoon-fangirl

#ladynoir #ml #mlb #miraculous #miraculous ladybug

[kentofication]

🔍︎ — kishibe ✰ fem!reader

♯ — you and kishibe decide to go look for a furry companion.

∎ — 0.7k ✰ fluff

ⅲ — uhhhhhh, meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow meow. happy new year (eve) for some of yall.

the faint scent of whiskey, extinguished cigarettes, and kishibe’s scent lingered in your shared bed. he had disappeared unnoticed once again, and once again he had fixed you breakfast to go along with your day. 

of course, his devil hunting job was overwhelming for him—and yourself because of his lack of presence—but he would always find a way to make you feel at home. 

you started to feel a growth in your heart whenever kishibe is not around. a horrible growth, a growth that kept getting worse and worse the more hours he was away from you. you clenched your fork as you continued to eat your breakfast, unbeknownst to you that he had arrived early. 

kishibe would usually spend his late nights drinking out with his comrades after a job well done—or just to relieve some of the stress he had recently encountered. seeing him in front of the apartment door lit up your eyes to the point where you thought you were in a mere fairy tale. 

“you’re home early.” you said, as you walked closer to kishibe, inhaling his deep musky scent of alcohol and the scent of a devil’s blood. he let out a deep ‘yeah’ as he embraced your warm embrace. 

in this moment, it was like neither of you wanted to let go of each other. in this moment, the moment that was rare for the both of you, you two had fully acknowledged each other’s presence. 

“sorry,” kishibe started, rubbing your back with his unoccupied hand that wasn’t stuffed in his coat pocket. you peered up at him, still nudging your head further into his chest, embracing the warmth that he had to offer. “sorry?” you questioned, still looking at his tiring eyes. 

“sorry for not being here . . . with you.” you pouted and averted your eyes away from him. “it’s lonely without you, y’know?” he mumbled an ‘mhm’ in response, resting his head on top of yours. “i can try to fix that loneliness.” kishibe muttered, reaching inside of his coat. 

you backed away from him to see what he was trying to present to you. he pulled out an index shaped card and flipped it to show the contents. “adoption?” you questioned, thoroughly examining the card. 

“there’s a little adoption center up the street,” he began. “i thought you might want a little companion while i’m gone for long periods of time.” your eyes began to fade into a pit of darkness. you didn’t want a replacement for him while kishibe’s gone. you wanted him in general. but, you know he’s just trying to help you the best way he can. so you had to accept his offer. 

“okay,” you said. “just know that i love you, okay?” kishibe mumbled, “i love you too.” before kissing you on your cheek—the scar on his left cheek briefly brushing against your own. 

the smell of the adoption center was very overwhelming. smells of fur and saliva overturned the cogs in your brain. kishibe chuckled at your little attempts to briefly fan the smell away as he handed you a handkerchief to cover your nose with. 

as the smell died down, you two finally examined all the want-to-be-adopted animals in the shelter. it ranged from cats to dogs to iguanas to snakes to bearded dragons. you two explored the endless categories of animals until you landed on one particular species. 

“i like that one.” kishibe said, pointing to the tuxedo cat that was peacefully sleeping in the cat house. “me too, but i also like that one.” you stated, pointing at the calico cat that had orange, white, and brown fur. you two stayed in the cat section until you finally picked the tuxedo cat to come home with the both of you. 

you decided to drive home because kishibe was heavily intoxicated because of his secret stash of whiskey hidden beyond his coat. you smiled as the tuxedo cat nuzzled closer to kishibe and started making biscuits on his perfectly black coat. he groaned when his claws went too far into the fabric, slightly puncturing his skin, but he didn’t mind. after all, kishibe loved cats. and so did you. 

“well,” kishibe groaned. “you have a little companion to keep you company now.” he slurred. “y’happy?” 

you fixated your eyes on the road, “i was already happy when you came into my life, kishibe.” kishibe smiled, the scar on his cheek tugging up along with his grin. “love you so much.” he said, before drifting off to sleep. “love you too, kishibe. i always will.”  

2022 © originally posted by @kentofication. please do not copy, translate, repost, or plagiarize. (reblogs are appreciated!)

#kishibe #chainsaw man #kishibe fluff #kishibe x reader #kishibe x y/n #csm fluff #csm x reader #csm x y/n #kishibe imagines #kishibe drabbles #csm imagines #csm drabbles

[xxgremlinleexx]

More info on our situation.

This will be posted to the GoFundMe as well.

I feel that it is incredibly important to express just how last resort this is. It has come to my understanding that if people are to come across this, they are likely to believe I haven't exhausted all of my options.

This, unfortunately, isn't the case.

Mississippi has never been safe for us as black, queer people. And having neighbors turned against us for something orchestrated by pur landlord has made it even less so for us to continue being here.

There is absolutely nothing left for us here.

Lemme explain. As of now, both my partner and I are employed. However, our pay and hours are nowhere near enough to cover the cost of rent without outside assistance from friends and family who are all also struggling at this time. This includes our other partner who has their own shit to deal with. I work at Dominos and am paid a flat $9.00/hr as a CSR. I'm only granted NINE (9) hours a week. Yes. You read that correctly. Only 9 hours a week. 18 every two. 36 a month. Which is why I started doing commissions. To make ends meet.

Because Void (our cat) would genuinely have nowhere to go if we didn't make things work somehow. We've had him since he was a kitten, and he would be even more devastated than us.

Friends can't take him. Not anyone nearby. And with the lack of proper shelters, surrendering him would likely spell death.

Just know, while things weren't perfect, they were not always like this. We started falling behind after a technological error on the Apartment's end (More on that later) where two months' worth of rent was never posted. And once we made the error known, it came with fees stacked from both months and then some. In the middle of March. After I'd been dropped from my internship at a super Christian-run food bank. Where I was the only openly queer one there. 🙃

And it's truly only been downhill from there.

My nesting partner is paid slightly more than me at 9.75/hr, but they haven't been given a full 40 hour week since September of last year. This is after asking for all that can be given at their job despite dealing with chronic pain and being immunocompromised. They've been working without any sort of proper accommodation aside from being offered brief breaks in the store's beer cooler.

We've taken out payday loans out of sheer desperation not to lose our home, two of which almost crippled us.

We do not have a car. Mississippi's public transportation system is absolutely abysmal. I used the bus to go to work during my internship. I was left stranded twice and was s3xually harrassed during my rides on several occasions. The system is horrendously underfunded, so the drivers just don't care.

We have tried various programs including section 8. The wait lists are endless.

The property manager has explicitly expressed that they do not accept vouchers from any of the most prevelant housing assistance programs in our area. Which was one of the reasons why we almost weren't allowed to move here (Making a video on that soon.) during a time where we were, in fact, homeless and running out of time at the hotel we were staying at. The only assistance we have is for electric. And that's only because that bill is not processed directly through the complex itself.

I've been permanently flagged by the unemployed office. Why? Because one of my employers (the most transphobic experience I've ever had. More on that later.) claimed that nobody under my legal name, SS, or anything had ever worked there before. Every other experience listed was verified, but due to that one instance, even when I provided my old work badge and my W2, I was (and still am) no longer able to apply for unemployment without being stuck in a neverending wait list for an investigation that will never come. It will remain stuck in pending for months and then the case number will magically close without notice.

We have Food Stamps, but due to the sudden dip in income and hours, MDHS has pretty much flagged that I'm able-bodied but just choosing not to work. Which has resulted in the amount we're given monthly to harshly decrease.

What I'm trying to say is that the truly needy and unfortunate are treated like rats and scammers. Pests. These programs put in place to help us aren't funded enough to make the people tasked with running them truly care. So they turn us away.

This has been a problem in Mississippi for years. The state government is given money to help and distribute as needed, but those funds are withheld. Millions of dollars every year are kept away from the families who need it most, and nobody here can answer why.

And if you're queer or a person of color? Good luck.

I explain all of this to say that we genuinely need help wherever we can get it.

We need to get out of Mississippi.

Please help in any way you can. Spread this and my GoFundMe wherever you can. It is us the link above. Share it wherever, whether you can donate or not.

My commissions are open. All three slots are available. I will gladly work for the money.

Thank you for your reading.

#black history #black history month #black artist #black queer artist #black boys #gofundmeboost #gofundmeplease #gofundus #go fund them #cats #kofi commission #digital commisions #lgbtqia community #lgbt artist #queer bipoc #bipoc #nonbinary #non biney #poc artist #queer poc #black queer #digital art #digital artist #queer artist #queer #lgbtq #black lives matter #blackfurry #anything helps #help us

[ganymedesclock]

What's in a hamburger, or, the morality of food

So, I am a person who eats meat.

If you say "why" I can talk to you about the choices I continue to make as an adult but really, the answer is, because I was fed by my parents and this included bacon and hot dogs and steaks and chicken nuggets and burgers, and while I had many misgivings about food that was not specifically one of them.

When I was little, I read Brian Jacques' Redwall series and I watched Ghibli films and in particular, I picked a little book off the shelf called Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. These stories and their messages about food were fascinating to me.

Hatchet is, for those who've never read it, a story about a teenage boy who becomes unexpectedly lost in the canadian wilderness. It is a story primarily about survival. The eponymous hatchet is a thing his well-meaning mother clips to his belt when sending him off to go be rugged and outdoorsy with his recently divorced father- a thing he finds ridiculous at the time, that turns out to be the only thing besides his clothes and a windbreaker jacket, that make it through the plane crash with him.

Initially, he is able to forage successfully. Then, he starts to be able to catch fish. But there comes a part where he starts dreaming about grocery store displays full of meat. He yearns for it. And this builds his resolve to start building tools that he can hunt animals with.

The animals he hunts are never like the grocery store he dreams of. Paulsen himself was an avid outdoorsman, hunter, and dogsledder, and that backbone of real experience carries profoundly through a fictional narrative. There is an unsparing reality to the way that Paulsen writes about this business of making food out of a beast.

It was shocking to a person like I was at that time, a kid who stopped fishing with my dad because one time the hook bit a little too deep and we couldn't simply pluck the fish off it and throw it back like usual, where I was forced to stare at a living, wriggling, yellow-green creature and walk away to shelter myself from seeing what I already knew- that Dad was going to fix this poor creature's affairs the only way he could. He was going to kill it.

I consider myself a fairly sentimental bleeding heart. I grew up with the usual stock of disney films and fairytale stories that idealized the gallant hunter, the spiritual mystic who's One With The Forest And The Beasts. I've spent my entire life living in houses with animals- mostly cats, but there were gerbils and dwarf hamsters and a cockatiel still going strong after twenty years. I draped myself over zoo railings staring in adoring wonder at a great lazy tiger sunning itself, its powerful sides rising and falling with gentle breath.

I know what it means, when an animal is alive. I dislike the idea of inflicting pain. If anyone actually took me on a hunting trip, I don't know if I'd have it in me to kill my own food, to look at a deer or wild rabbit and decide to make it dinner.

That's fine. I have a privilege in that case. If I wanted to, I could go vegan quite easily. The biggest hurdle would be one I'm already facing in a meat-eating lifestyle- I'm not living with my parents anymore and my independent meal planning skills are fairly weak.

Am I still okay eating meat?

Yes, actually.

That same child that balked away from the fish on the hook would stare at deli counters, specifically the section with the seafood. Wide-eyed walleye and salmon, still with their heads, the cuts of meat fanned out to make it clear where on the body it was severed from. Butchering is a fascinating subject to me. In a high school lab class I went from grimacing to one of the first ones lining up wanting to put some sterile gloves on so I could poke and prod at a cross-section of a cow's femur.

Meat and bone, blood and sinew. We that come from kingdom animalia's berth of life are inextricably made of these building blocks, and we can be taken back apart into them. To understand flesh and bone is to know a fundamental secret of yourself and of something else.

And yet! What of the soul, what of that vital yet untouchable spark, what is it that I balk so much at the thought of taking a gun or a bow and looking down at a deer and knowing she is alive, so very alive, and that I could potentially snuff that out? Even if I brought my own knives, and someone talked me through it, how to section and break and dig, carved her up until I was deep in her body, I would never be able to find it, or even a mark of its passing. I could hold a deer's heart- searching doesn't tell me how much it would weigh, but if a deer averages 300 lb. and the average human heart is 10 ounces of weight, I'd guess vaguely that a deer's heart is more than that, maybe fifteen ounces of the organ we've come to think, in our curious predilections, might be the seat of the soul.

I feel that my empathy with animals cuts its teeth on a fascination. I think that animals do not want to die, on whatever level they understand that. As scary as I think the idea of shooting a deer dead myself, for my own curiosity, makes my stomach turn a little, I wonder at the taste of venison. I think about how much a deer's heart weighs. These concepts are tangled together in how I view the world.

The body is such a beautiful, fragile, incredibly complex system. I think the destruction of a body- as death inevitably is, to some degree, the movement of its equilibrium towards a point of stillness and silence- is something that at bare minimum should be handled with delicacy. A cultural christian with no jewish background, I nonetheless think there is an incredible sensibility to the concept of kosher butchering, the painstaking work of the shochet. The shochet's work is not inherently filthy or sinful; but it requires incredible care be taken.

I am fascinated by bodies. I am hungry for meat. I am, myself, a body that sustains its own equilibrium. My ancestors furnished my jaw with latching and ripping fangs, and my guts are short. Cellulose is nothing they can make sense of. If there is a bloodthirstiness in carnivory, I can say that I come by it completely honestly. Even most of what we think of as obligate herbivores will acquaint themselves with blood and gristle before they accept starvation. The nature of life is the nature of hunger.

But also, there is a quivering heart inside the deer. She wants to live. She is capable of feeling pain. She is not, I believe, a thing placed here for me and my entertainment and my hunger; as a child of the same ecosystem, I have no inherent claim that my stomach prioritizes over her life. I do not believe that there is an inherent holy order that smooths its hands maternally over my hungry shoulders, and tells me that it is okay, to let my arrow or bullet fly, to sharpen my knives, because in some cosmic equation I'm worth more than the deer.

It's a sticky problem, and there's no decisive way to moral purity.

I think that this is true of a lot of things worth talking about. And I think this is why I understand the compulsion and arguments that lead a lot of people to veganism or pescatarianism or any other form of restricted dieting based in concepts of morality- and there are plenty of people who are vegetarians for reasons that have nothing to do with this dilemma, and certainly not because of my personal take on it.

I think that it is the job of every human being who has the brains to think about it, to make peace with their own hunger. We were born in omnivorous bodies. It's an anatomical and scientific fact. Our stomach is an opportunist with no morals. Its job is not to weigh souls. Its charge is to eat, and thus, to survive.

That part falls to the brain.

(about three pounds, on average.)

In Brian's Winter, a sequel to Hatchet, Brian successfully hunts a deer for the first time in his life, and sets out the resources to make himself a rudimentary thanksgiving dinner. The notion he should say something, express some gratitude, strikes him. His first response is anger- he's stranded helplessly in the woods and winter is setting in- until he settles on the idea that he should thank the deer. Her presence on his table is the grace of his further survival. It is an incredibly moving segment.

I don't fault people for facing those deep, genuine emotions, and deciding they can't do it. They would rather live a life without furs, leathers, and meat in them, because commissioning the death of the animal is really just an abstraction away from pointing the gun at it yourself. It still happened. I know my dad killed the fish. Would I be a better person if I had stayed and watched it happen?

But even that doesn't dodge the tricky question.

We live in a world where major agribusinesses and unsustainable factory farming methods underpin the fruits and vegetables as much as the meat on our tables. Our stomach does not differentiate, and why should it? That's not its job. It falls to the brain to worry.

And, worry, we probably should. Not about if I'm eating a burger and the person next to me is eating vegetarian pad thai and in their mind I've marked myself a sinful butcher and in my mind, in my less kind moments, I might see them as pretentious and shortsighted. But about what we can do to the planet, and each other, in the course of sating our appetites.

I think there are incredibly rich discussions to have about life and food- on way more avenues than I just discussed! Religion! Culture! Economic and logistical realities! Science!- but a certain amount of that requires us to face the idea that we are looking at the same problem and weighing it as best we can with very different frameworks on the world.

Who knows? Maybe some day in the future there will be a revolution in easy to produce synthetic food, and you'll have people who find it inherently unethical to consume anything that was once alive.

#animal death #readmore

[yuusaris]

@rochelle-echidna showed up in the thief king bakura tag cuz I follow it, doing a "post a couple paragraphs of your WIP" share-a-thon thing and said anyone who sees it could do it and I saw it and I wanna do it, I wanna I wanna I wannaaaaa!!!!!

tagging @millenniumringg, @justapalspal @nightingalejune and @ladymdc and anyone else who just wanna wanna wanna like meeeeeee

I'm obvs gunna do a few of these, obviously. I have too many WIP's not to share. I'm gunna do my lmk ones first, then the ygo's and I'll end on a very delayed WIP for rvb, mmkay? mmkay.

--[Unnamed]--

(Context: My last dump was to make way for this - a whole new plot and direction for a fic whose name doesn't suit it right now and is thus unrtitled - the idea is... well, honestly, this is almost all of the first chapter, so, it'll speak for itself.)

“Like a…bri-- a- a wife?” Macaque’s brow furrows. “You want to get married? You.”

“What’s that tone? I could get married if I want!” Wukong spits. “If I even want a queen - I mean, it’s not like we even need one.”

“Then why are you thinking about it?”

Wukong groans, “Well, everyone else’s got one!” and deflates at his status - the odd-king-out. “Bull’s totally gunna marry Jade Face, Peng and Tusk are saddled up, King of Confusion’s just got that new thing on his arm, even White Snake snagged herself some human to mack on-- Not that it matters!” Wukong defends - no, declares, because it is a fact. “Cuz I don’t need one just cuz everyone else is doing it, just - why’s everyone dipping on party time because of some spouse, what’s so important about them? Am I missing something here?”

“If you have to ask, you’re probably not ready for that kind of relationship--”

“Relationship, shmelationship, what’s that gotta do with anything?!” Wukong, just as he finishes, decides he doesn’t like the look on Macaque’s face either. “Y’know, for my right hand man, you’re not bein’ too helpful right now.”

--[Almost And Enough]---

(Context: My S4 Wukong In The Broken Scroll fic I've been working on sinceeeeee fffffuck, whenever it was S4 came out. I've been working on this all year and Chapter 1 IS done, but I want to finish the fic before I post. Either way, we've got a Wukong - currently not Wukong and therefore Monkey -deciding to share his Secret, that being, he's going to leave to find immortality. And he picks a very particular person to share it with first...) The Macaque looks to the sky, the trees, the fruits - as long as it’s not as his King. “The others should know.” Is his only, halting, response.

Monkey shrugs, shoulders hiking then rolling back in a way he hopes is cool. “I wanted to tell you first.”

“Why?” The Macaque asks with a dismissal that’s purely performative. “We’re not close just because we’re part of the same troop - We’re almost strangers, we’ve never even talked.”

Lies are sort of like secrets--

“You should tell the other mountain troops to merge with ours.” Monkey had suggested. “It makes no sense for us to hoard the cave when there’s others who need the shelter too!”

“I can do that,” replied the monkey, a macaque with three round ears to each side of his head. His face was a wild splatter of red with exciting flares, more extravagant than the smooth curves of Monkey’s peach-pink patch. “You’re King now, so...”

--but much less fun.

“Well, ‘almost’ isn't a stranger, is it?” Monkey grins when he finds a stick in the ground - almost a branch but just shy of earning the title. Absently, he answers as he slings it over one shoulder, “Besiiiides, us not talking is as much on me as it is you so, this is me breaking the ice and you being forgiven for not trying.”

--[My Poltergeist Is Dead And Everything Is Worse Now]--

(Context: a trauma-release fic I've been writing while mourning my cat. Weirdly took on life with sections named after bits of Bojack's eulogy for his mother. It's a funeral, taking place within the Milleniaum...Cube? Cube. Plana Cube, after Ryou got ousted from the movie by the Cube. If Joey went to a place no one remembers him, Ryou went to a surrealist funeral, where he'll be around all the people he lost, with a big focus on the Spirit of the Ring. His family is written in past tense because they have passed away and this cannot be undone or forgotten)

He sits at the pew, next to his mother, with his sister crawling into his lap. The Spirit sits behind him, and toys with Ryou’s hair, drawn back as respectably as a boy with long hair can manage. Ryou shakes his head to shake the hand off, but only succeeds in garnering Amane’s infant hands instead. 

“It doesn’t make sense, him being gone.”

Ryou listens to her speak, his eyes on the casket.

“It doesn’t feel real.”

Ryou looks to his side. His mother’s head was bowed, not looking at the coffin. Her stiff body and closed eyes unnerve him from her seat. In a rhythm, she took one long breath, exhaling, and each after became smaller and smaller. In a moment, she didn’t seem to breathe at all - Ryou checks for her chest to rise wide again, and ends up staring instead.

“Did you love him?” Ryou asks her, a thing that’s haunted him just beneath his foundations.

A glassy eye was open, pointed in Ryou’s direction. The answer took longer than Ryou was comfortable with, and the answer itself had been no sweeter.

“Do you?”

--[Love, The Me That's Killing You]--

(Context: Ryou has discovered Bakura's got Hanahaki disease and it's killing them both as they share a body. So he's trying to figure out who is it Bakura could possibly be in love with. Despite efforts to dissuade him, Bakura eventually concedes to the search, rushing Ryou past pictures of the Battle City finals until--)

“That one!” Bakura points. To a young girl with cinnamon brown hair.

“Jounouchi-kun’s sister?” Ryou asks, dreadingly, as Bakura nods, furiously. “...She’s… thirteen.”

There’s a choking sound. “Not… not that one, then.” Bakura rasps. “The other one, there was another one, still had the hair and the - there! Yes, her!” He points, it’s Isis. Ryou’s confused.

“But you just said-”

“I made a mistake, am I allowed to make mistakes?”

“About someone you love,” Ryou gestures to the petal pile, “this much?”

“It was - dark,” Bakura stutters. He stuttered. “And windy, and there was - we were in a lot of pain, Landlord…” Bakura’s brushing it all off.

“You’re dying over someone you just mistook for someone else?”

“Well, it’s not like I spent a lot of time with her, is it?!” Bakura barks. 

“Then what could you possibly love about her?!”

“That… is…!” Bakura stops, sputtering, “That is exactly it! She doesn’t speak to me unnecessarily, just how I like it! She knows her place, unlike a certain someone!” 

“Seen and not heard, is she?” Ryou gags, of his own reflexes, in disgust at the slime-coated sentiment. With a choke, Bakura balks, mumbling about Ryou understanding when he’s older.

--[3 Reasons Why (I Never Told You I Was Playmaker)]--

(Context: I love VRAINS. I love Chatshipping. I will write the Chatshipping somehow.)

“You don’t gotta tell me all that,” Shima says - as if it’s so simple to say even this! “Just say you don’t wanna talk about it.”

“You would have complained that I was keeping something from you,” Yusaku replies, without looking. “You would have felt hurt, gotten upset and run off.”

“I’m never upset with you!” Shima’s shocked, somehow. Yusaku only glances at him, brows stitched in dulled disbelief. “Well.. not for more than an hour, at least!”

‘Not for more than an hour’. Typical Shima.

“And," he continues, pointedly, "I wasn’t upset you ‘got secrets’,” Shima looks out, as if looking for where Yusaku’s eyes had just been. “You act like I’m too stupid to understand stuff.”

“I don’t think you’re stupid,” Yusaku’s quick to deny. Something about what Shima said twists a knot in his chest. “I think you’re overexcitable and you don’t always think things through, and-”

“Sounds like a stupid guy to me,” Shima interrupts with a frown. 

Yusaku’s mouth is stuck open from that, having no course correction for that comment.

Shima, not Typical Shima, stands up. He’s not looking at Yusaku. His fists go into his pockets.

“Whatever,” He shrugs. “See you at school.”

With too straight a gait, Shima walks with a tremble. It quickly gives way into a bursting sprint once he can’t hold it back. And Yusaku is the coward who doesn’t stop him.

--[Wedding Soup (Chapter 2)]--

(Context: after a sleepless night and wrestless workday, Ryou's sunset afternoon ends with many... many tsuchinoko in the backyard. They are notorious liars, known for their penchant for drinking and a deadly bite.)

“And I didn’t even get a chance to answer, the cashier just went,” Ryou pauses, as another dizzy spell hits him. “ ‘Cash or Card’.” With an offended sniff, he takes another long drink of tea - black and intense and brewed with double the teaspoons to make sure it keeps him awake. Ryou sets the mug down with a huff. “As if I’m doing something burdensome by personally restoring a cultural landmark.” 

“This is a nice trap,” One of the tsuchinoko says from the writhing ball. 

“It was certainly the nicest there,” Ryou says. “Not too painful, is it?”

“Agonizing!”

“Oh good, you wouldn’t believe how awful the others looked.” At the corner of his eye, Ryou spies another one slithering towards a covered trap. If the others are aware, they’re just as keen to warn it as Ryou is. “I even looked some up before I went out -  for every humane trap I found in that place, there were ten more glue traps.”

“Sounds fun!”

“I know. I swear, the heartlessness of some people--”

A snap, a yelp, then the frantic rattling of metal as the tsuchinoko flings itself across the trap cage. Ryou dons his thick gloves again, getting up from his spot on the back porch. “Here, here,” he says softly. One hand holds the snake firmly by the back of its tiny head, the other taking the flat bottom of the small cage. He lifts it from the ground, quickly shifts it to the larger tank, and tilts it before opening the flap. 

“In you go.”

--[Gore Couture]--

“Just last week, residents of rural Blood Gulch reported screaming around 2 AM. Police responded within minutes of the third report, but were only able to narrow down the location an hour after arriving on the scene. When officers arrived, they found no body, but confirmed the presence of human blood and organ tissue.”

“Can this schmuck emphasize any more words?” Isaac leaned against the break room counter, watching up at the screen.

“This isn’t a gossip channel,” Mason Wu’s stressed tone signaled agreement. “Someone’s missing at least a liter of blood.”

The television at the station at least showed part of his work on the news, a brief interior look into the storage cubicle. Without the corpse in the arranged outline, there were only blood splatters, disarrayed furniture and a signature - Gore Couture by Felíx.

Maybe the accent on the ‘i’ was a bit much.

“A liter?” Isaac gaped. “Ho-o-oly shit.”

“You’re a damn sociopath,” Wu whipped back to glare. “You do know you’re on thin ice for being a no-show that night--”

“I told you already,” Isaac shrugged. His coffee sloshed dangerously close to the rim of his mug. “I was with somebody.” It wasn’t a lie - Isaac was with abody.

#shadowpeach #tendershipping #chatshipping #lmk #rvb #ygo #yugioh #my writing #me flavored soup #body/life #wedding soup

[starxiasstuff]

AHHHH, I've been in the om fandom for a while but never ever touched the og game or the more recent one nightbringer, gddfhbmdyvb I finally started playing om, so here are some hcs(that's the only thing I can write rn)

WHAT ITS LIKE DATING THE SEVEN BROTHERS(!!NOT POLY!!)

(A/N-i thought it would be fun to include songs that the 7 would relate to aswell so have fun listening to the neighbourhood and chase Atlantic AND girl in red AND some of my other fave artists<3)

!!AVATAR OF PRIDE!!

!!LUCIFER

Song he would relate to-

<3-Poor dude would be so tired all the time. Would do his literal best to make it up to you, but he ends up just falling asleep on your shoulder

(better let the poor manz sleep).

<3-Would be super vulnerable with you, would def vent (only if you told him like a thousand times that it was okay to)

<3-Both of you would go to a library to bury yourselves in mountains of work and to come back so mentally and physically tired

<3-Would do your best to keep his brothers in line and try to talk to satan and belphie about their uhh "complicated" relationship (pls it's the least you can do for the poor dude)

<3- you would lock his office/study/room up and hide all his work just to take him on some wild fun goose chase of a date (he's kinda pissed at first but ends up having sm fun)

<3-would fosho call you lamb/ love.

<3-Hand holding and affectionate pecks on your lips

<3-He would ask luke how to make your fave pastry(or)baked good/dessert

<3-would slow dance to some classical music

!!AVATAR OF GREED!!

!!MAMMON

Song he would relate to-

<3-poessive as hell, his blood would literally boil if he saw you talking to someone he doesn't like

<3-You make him sleep on the couch(or)floor if he doesn't pay his brothers back atleast a quarter of the money they lent him

<3-You comfort him if he has a fight with his brother (pls those 6 can be so brutal with words sometimes it's not even funny)

<3-Would fly you around devildom

<3-If you have a bad day he'll buy you whatever you want.

<3-Would fosho show you off

<3-will hold luke at literal gunpoint asking him to make you something you like(poor luke)

<3-you two would pull the most brutally funny pranks on each other (you and asmo put pink hair dye in his shampoo, didn't even need to use that much since he already has white hair)

!!AVATAR OF ENVY!!

!!LEVITHAN

Song he would relate to-

<3-he cried a river when you confessed to him saying "who would love a yucky otaku like me"

<3-would have meaningless banters over which anime is better

<3-Would let you sit on his lap while he was in a game but would be super flustered

<3-would play so many rpg games with you

<3-he would level you up on a game he got you into so you two can play tgt

<3-would help you recreate anime/game food with luke

<3-would turn his bathtub into the most comfiest place in the whole house

<3-all nighters playing games or just talking about life 👍.

!!AVATAR OF WRATH!!

!!SATAN

Song he would relate to-

(I hc him to see luci as a toxic overbearing father figure instead of a brother)

</3-the relationship would be rocky most of the times cause of his temper

<3-you two try so hard to have a functional relationship

<3-he stayed up one night thinking of all the times the relationship could've come crashing down and apologises for everything.

<3-instead of sneaking cats in you two volunteer at cat cafes/shelters(one less thing for luci to take care of)

<3-you two would kidnap luke just to take him to the shelter/cafe

<3-if a book peaked your interest at the library but was in the restricted section he would sneak it just for you(only after making sure it isn't cursed or anything of the sorts)

<3-matching cat onesies

!!AVATAR OF LUST!!

!!ASMODEUS

Song he would relate to-

<3-he was not surprised when you asked him out, he was honestly kinda annoyed it took you this long to confess 😐😐

<3-would have your borderline steamy moments (come on he's the Avatar of lust) but he will always stop when he needs to

<3-would take you on so many shopping sprees to the body shop(he almost pounced at a women for buying the last shea body butter)

<3-would try his best to be less narcissistic and encourage you to talk about yourself more often

<3-wouls take you to insane parties in the devildom

<3-would just barge in holding clothes he bought for you asking you which ones you like and which you would like returned

<3-in order to control his sins instincts he would get consent for everything "love, can I hug you, please?"

<3-would drag you and luke to the finest pastry shops

<3-would be your number one hype man "OMG you slay that new outfit"

<3-brutally honest fashion advice.

(A/N-I added this to the post by accident and idk how to get rid of it)

!!AVATAR OF GLUTTONY!!

!!BEELZEBUB

Song he would relate to-

<3-be prepared for him to bring belphie on every single date(not that you mind it much)

<3-would get you to somehow workout with him

<3-drags you out of class just to eat with you

<3-would ask you to cook for him with the biggest bambi eyes ever, he obviously tries to return the favour but ends up eating the ingredients

<3-he cannot stand you mad at all so whenever you're pissed he will pick you up over his shoulders and throw you on the nearest soft surface

<3-he will ask you to eat more esp when you're sick, he will spoon feed you soup

<3-surpries you with your fave dessert (no luke involved dw)

<3-takes you places like the pool or rock climbing centers to have some fun and get a mini workout out of it to.

!!AVATAR OF SLOTH!!

!!BELPHEGOR

Song he would relate to-

<3-confessed to you in his sleep.

<3-tries to not fight with Lucifer in front of you

<3-if either of you are having a shitty day he will suggest taking a long nap

<3-somehow stays awake long enough to kiss you goodnight when you've drifted away to la-la land

<3-i hc him to not eat much so you and beel get him to eat

<3-like Lucifer he will also get vulnerable with you but not vent.

<3-if he can't sleep or doesn't want to he'll take you on walks or shopping or something else you like

<3-little spoon

OMG. this is the longest post I've worked on I hope you guys like it, I'll post request rules soon ig (not like I'll get any anyways), bye bye my Luvs!

#obey me #om! asmodeus #om! beelzebub #om! mammon #om! nightbringer #om! headcanons #om! lucifer #om! luke #om belphie #om leviathan #om satan #Spotify

[jupiter235]

I've been debating the best way to go about doing something like what I'm about to do here without giving away too much information about my identity, and I think I've come up with something. So here it goes:

Content warning: mentions of animal death

So a situation has developed at the animal shelter I started working at around a month ago now. A week ago as of today (October 13, 2023) a litter of kittens was brought in to the shelter. I work primarily in cats now, so I myself have handled these particular kittens, as well as a few of my coworkers. And they're very young kittens, too. Like, were probably too young to be separated from their mother, but as far as I know, their mother was nowhere to be found, so she wasn't brought in with them.

We only just discovered yesterday morning that those kittens came in with a virus called panleukopenia.

Those of you who either work in the veternary field or are cat parents likely know what this is already. I myself had never heard of it until yesterday--I've never owned a cat myself. But for those of you who don't know, the way it was explained to me is that it's the cat version of parvo (a virus dangerous to dogs)--a deadly virus that is contagious and can kill an animal that hasn't been vaccinated against it.

We didn't discover it until one of my coworkers, who was working in the room for newly dropped-off cats and went to clean their kennel, discovered one of the kittens dead and another one of their siblings sick. Our supervisor tested them, and they tested positive for panleuk. They would have had this illnes from the time they arrived at our shelter, and several of us have handled these kittens, so at this point we've already exposed all of the cats in the facility to this. Meaning the entire cat section of the shelter is now under quarantine until we can make sure all the other cats are clear.

The reason I'm posting about all of this? To put out a call for help. But in order to do this without compromising my identity--no one in real life knows I have a Tumblr, and I'd prefer to keep it that way--this is how I'm asking:

If you follow me but we aren't mutuals, and if you can--please don't feel bad if you can't do it for any reason--donate to your own local animal shelters. Food, money, cleaning supplies, etc. Please donate so they can keep their animals healthy and help them find a home.

If we're mutuals and you want to help out the shelter I work at, IM me for a link to their donation page. Any help would of course be appreciated.

#cw: mentions of animal death

[hypmic-writings]

all i want... all i ask for... ichiro and his s/o debating over whether they'll get a dog or a cat because i'm a FIRM believer that he's a dog person and i think it would be funny <3

━━ ∘◦ ☆ ◦∘ ━━

Pairing: Ichiro Yamada x reader

Genre: Fluff

Warnings: None

Word Count: 788

A/N: This one was so cute to do and I totally agree that he would be a dog person! I love dogs and I really want to foster in the autumn so fingers crossed. Hope you enjoy~

⋘ ──── ∗ ⋅◈⋅ ∗ ──── ⋙

You shifted slightly on the couch, your head resting firmly on Ichiro’s shoulder as you scrolled through your phone intensely. His arm was wrapped around your shoulder, holding you close to him and you could feel his head rest slightly against yours as he looked down at the screen in your hands.

“This is insane, how are we supposed to just choose one?” you said with a huff. The small Pomeranian on the screen stared back at you with big eyes and you felt your heart melt instantly. “Look at this one, he’s smiling!” you cooed.

“Damn, that’s the cutest dog we’ve seen so far,” Ichiro agreed, taking a sip of his drink before nudging you. “Go back to the Labrador, I want to see which one I like more,” he urged.

“It’s crazy that there are so many beautiful dogs like this in the kennel,” you mused sadly, swiping through your phone.

You and Ichiro had been seated for the better part of an hour scrolling through local shelters and kennels and seeing all of the pets they had available. You had been dating for almost a year now, and you decided it was as good of a time as any to start looking for a fluffy companion. Ichiro instantly agreed to have a pet and the two of you began looking immediately.

“Oh cute, they have cats on here too!” you suddenly exclaimed, clicking the ‘kitten’ option and instantly seeing pictures of adorable baby cats.

“What? No, go back to the puppies,” Ichiro said, practically sighing with impatience. You feigned a gasp as you looked up to your boyfriend.

“Don’t be mean to the kitties, they’re adorable!” you exclaimed, shoving the phone towards him as a small black and white kitten stared helplessly back at him.

“Yea, they’re cute, but a cat’s never gonna be as good of a pet as a dog,” Ichiro declared. His words made you pause as you pulled away to look at him.

“Of course they can! Cats are just as good of pets as dogs are!” you said, chuckling a bit. You could hear the seriousness in Ichiro’s voice, and you thought it was rather funny that he felt so passionately about cats and dogs.

“As if! All they do is hide from you and scratch up everything you own,” Ichiro grumbled with a frown.

“Sounds like you’ve just had some bad interactions with specific cats. You know most cats are adorable and attached to their owners, right?” you teased, poking his arm.

“No, all they do is throw up hairballs! You can’t walk them or teach them tricks or anything,” Ichiro argued back, pulling his arm away from you so he could excitedly talk. You chuckled and shook your head.

“Not true, my friend taught her cat ‘sit’ and ‘paw’, and she takes it out for walks all the time! Besides, they’re so self-sufficient it’s really amazing,” you said, a smile rising to your lips.

“Well…that’s just one example, other cats aren’t like that,” Ichiro whined, almost kicking his legs in a childlike manner, making you laugh.

“I think cats are cute!” you continued to tease him.

“No, cats are stupid and we’re getting a dog!” Ichiro demanded, stealing the phone from your hands and scrolling back to the ‘puppies’ section. You couldn’t stop the laughter from roaring out of your chest at your boyfriend’s cute outburst but Ichiro only glared at you, making you shake your head.

“You’re so cute when you’re passionate about dogs,” you sighed, wiping away a tear from your eye.

“Don’t be mean, Y/N, you know I’ve always wanted a puppy,” Ichiro grumbled as he stared back down at the phone. You moved back into him and happily nodded, kissing his cheek reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, babe, we can get a dog,” you told him. “…and then maybe a kitten in a few months so the puppy can have a pet,” you suggested, jokingly.

To your surprise, Ichiro paused and took a moment to consider your words. You looked at him with raised eyebrows and as he slowly turned towards you, you could see his face was twisted in concentration.

“Hmm…” he hummed. “You know what? Getting a pet for our pet actually sounds like a good idea. Maybe the dog can take care of the cat so that we don’t have to,” Ichiro chuckled with a resolved nod. You smiled and rolled your eyes before snagging your phone back and getting comfortable once more on the couch.

“I don’t think that’s how it works, but I like the idea of multiple pets,” you told him. Ichiro beamed.

“Well, if that’s the case, then let’s get TWO puppies!” he exclaimed with a grin.

“Ichiro, no!”

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

#hypmic #hypnosis mic #ichiro yamada #ichiro x reader #ichiro yamada x reader #ichiro #hypnosis microphone #imagines #scenarios #hypmic imagines #hypmic scenarios #hypnosis mic imagines #hypnosis mic scenarios #hypnosis microphone imagines #hypnosis microphone scenarios

[crystalelemental]

Now for the other half of the Nexomon Extinction bit: story, characters, creatures, etc. The non-mechanics. And this? This is, I think, their stride.

To clarify: we are currently through the Drake Isles. My wife started in on the Frozen Tundra, but had to double back for levels due to some team composition changes. Everything I'm talking about is only up through that point. I'd say "please don't share future details," but the Nexomon tag here seems to be like three people, and the Reddit forum hasn't updated in two years, so I'm probably safe. That said, I'm about to be that spoiler for everyone else. Yes, all three of you.

The story's pretty good! The first game was mostly fine, if goofy. The netherworld section had a great conclusion that really set things up nicely. Omnicron was released, but waited for your return as its rival; the strongest human against the strongest Nexomon. You win, and can destroy him, leading to the inevitable extinction of all Nexomon. They kinda leave off there, though, with the post-game being "His children also came back, but you can find them with this radar thing." It's contextless acquisition of legendary monsters though, nothing story-based occurs.

Extinction picks up 1000 years later, where the central conflict seems to be that these major beasts called Tyrants are awakening and fighting each other for dominance, in a war to find a new king to replace Omnicron. Humans are pushing back, and have dragons that are made to hunt these Tyrants, in order to prevent a sort of second coming of Omnicron that could wipe them out.

Your role in this is that you're a starting tamer going off on your quest when you are attacked by a dragon and have to find shelter. This kicks off a chain of events that sees you join the guild to fight against the Tyrants, and also to owning an egg that will one day hatch into a Tyrant. Things go as they go, fighting different Tyrant masters and eventually learning some really fun stuff about some of the major players being perhaps a tad extreme. It's a really interesting pivot, and I really enjoy how things are framed.

Cast is a lot more dynamic this time too. Not that there weren't interesting ones before, but I feel like a lot of it existed to be goofy. This time around, they're a little more...established? Or maybe I just find them more interesting. Amelie is fascinating, I like her a lot. There's a scene talking about how her life's work could go to waste if she doesn't take action, and the response is just a calm "If it could be undermined that easily, then what good was it? Let the best course win." Her motivation really is a sort of "good for the people" mentality, regardless of her own standing.

The children of Omnicron are back, and we get a bit more resolution about what's going on with them. Specifically, confirmation that the player character from game 1 did go back to defeat and imprison each of them, and they're really salty about it. It's interesting, because neither of them are particularly hostile anymore, just dissatisfied with their circumstance. I do like that both of the children we've met have kinda come around to you, at least mildly. Nadine in particular giving you advice on how to not die implies some level of interest in what you're doing. Given that Deena is currently standing against the current antagonist, it would be interesting if all the children aligned on this one. They're bastards, but I do love a good domesticated villain.

The creatures themselves are good to great. I like a lot of the creative work on these designs, and in particular love the amount of cats. Lunabelle is my favorite design in this series so far. I'm also a big fan of Malitress, Madamusa, Sirnympha, and Floreina. Some of the dragon designs are also really cool. I don't generally like standard dragons, but the dragons that don't strictly look like dragons are my jam. So big fan of the Psychic and Ghost dragons. The starter designs are all really strong, too. Even the ones I didn't love at first really grew on me. I think, by and large, I like this set of Nexomon better. There are a few designs I really miss, but this is a good batch.

I have been very satisfied with the general experience of the game overall. It's been great.

#nexomon extinction

[tomtenadia]

adopting a pet for rowaelin!

Thanks for the prompt. I actually wrote this on my lunch break today. I noticed the ask and I already knew what to write.

800 words and a lot of fluff.

Dogs and Hawks

It was a Saturday morning and instead of enjoying being off work Rowan had been dragged by his wife to a pet shelter. He had tried to protest but soon realised that winning a fight against a six months pregnant woman was hopeless, so he caved. 

And now here they were, at the entrance of the building, Aelin beaming with excitement.

The type of pet they agreed upon adopting had been another sore point. Aelin wanted a dog, Rowan wanted peace.

“Your daughter and I want a puppy to cuddle” she had told him while stroking her swollen belly.

Yes, she had quickly discovered that if she used the excuse that their daughter wanted something too, Rowan could not resist. He was a simp for his wife and their unborn daughter. His sneaky wife  knew that he’d do anything for his two girls.

A deep sigh left him “we can have a hamster or a rabbit”

Aelin poured “you can’t play with them.”

“Sure you can, fireheart”

His wife placed her hands on her hips ready to give him a row “Rowan Whitethorn-Galathynius stop being a cry baby. How am I supposed to go for a walk with a rabbit?”

“On a leash?” He replied deadpanned.

Aelin grumbled something and started marching to the entrance. As they got in the sounds of animal was almost overwhelming.

“Ohhhh look at all these poor dogs, I wish I could take you all home.” Aelin petted the head of a dark puppy and the animal licked her hand and she squealed.

Rowan followed behind, crouched near a cage and looked the dog in the eyes “ I prefer cats” then with a smug face stood and strutted away, joining his wife once more. 

Hand in hand they started walking but Aelin was so excited and stopped at every single cage to play and pet the dogs.

Half an hour later she still hadn’t decided. Not too shaggy, not too big, not too small, just like Goldilocks porridge, it had to be perfect. So Rowan endured. He offered opinions but Aelin had her own ideas. Eventually a staff member joined them.

“Can I help you?”

“Yes, I want to adopt a dog but I can’t decide.”

“Do you have any ideas?”

The two women started talking and Rowan just stood and held Aelin’s bag, completely forgotten.

“Do you have hawks?” He asked with a straight face.

The two women slowly turned their heads toward him. Aelin glared. The assistant just looked at him as if he was mad

“Excuse me?”

Rowan huffed a puff “hawks, they fly, they are quite majestic.” He even waved his arms to imitate the flying.

“Uhm, no sir, we don’t sell hawks.”

Rowan tsked disappointed “discrimination towards birds of prey?”

Aelin laughed nervously “you need to excuse my husband. He gets cranky if he misses his coffee.”

A loud snort left Rowan but the two women went back ignoring him.

An hour later they reached a section with puppies. Aelin had asked to see all the dogs and the shelter assistant had been super happy to indulge. 

Rowan was not prepared for the loud squeal from his wife. She was standing in front of a cage with a tiny Labrador with a light brown fur. Rowan admitted that the small animal was somehow cute. 

“This is Fleetfoot. Her mum died and was found by a couple who brought her in. She is not even one.”

Aelin started sobbing “sorry, hormones,”

Rowan passed her a tissues “we can give her a home, fireheart.”

The smile that his wife gave him was the most amazing thing he could ask for.

The assistant opened the cage and grabbed the puppy to pass her to Aelin. As soon as it was in her arms it licked her face and Aelin laughed in delight.

Rowan smiled fondly and watched Aelin play with the animal. 

“Oh, you are the cutest thing ever,” she kissed the dogs head and the animal kept licking her face in happiness “Are we going to make your grumpy dad smile?

“You can stay here, I will just go and grab the adoption papers.”

Aelin moved closer to Rowan and he made an effort to pat the puppy “I still think that not having hawks is discrimination.”

“Fine big boy, on the way home we can stop at the toy shop and get you a stuffed one.”

“Hm.”

Aelin ignored his antics “See? Our daughter likes it already, she is kicking hard,” her hand brushed her belly and in that instant Rowan smiled.

“Little traitor.”

The assistant eventually came back with all the papers and Aelin dragged Rowan to the pet shop next door to buy all they needed for their new friend.

It was a few hours later when they got back Aelin with Fleetfoot and Rowan with the stuffed white-tailed hawk.

#rowan x aelin #rowan whitethorn #rowaelin #aelin x rowan #rowaelin fanfic #rowaelin fanfiction #rowaelinkids #aelin galythinius #throne of glass series

[elekid]

how is the housing situation going?

In (not so) short-

the fact that grim and i unexpectedly were put out of my fathers house w/o rly any of our belongings/paperwork/id has put quite a damper on the speed at which housing happens for us. we live in a tent city, which presents its own issues in terms of the weather...and its own unique issues in terms of politics. nobody but the people living here manage the place, bc if you dont help out... u get kicked out. i dont wanna get into it deeply but we are chipping away at the steps required to achieve some form of- at least- stable indoor shelter before spring...

i dont want there to be like assumption that im not working as hard as i need to so i will note that

-section 8 vouchers are by lottery ONLY and ONLY if u qualify AND apply in time next month

-offices are frequently closed when otherwise stated to be open, you only find out after the 1.5 hr transit ride there

-neither grim nor i have basic needs beyond housing being met rn. there is always something to be given up in favor of something equally neccessary

-i now have court for SSI as well as court for the DV charge my father filed and had me jailed for

BASICALLY My Husband And Spurs the Cat and I are pernaciously rolling our stones uphill through the system in the manner which we understand, leads to permanent housing. in a nutshell the powers that be wanna see if we can live long enough to get the bone they gonna (hopefully) eventually throw us. grisly and just the way things are.

#we just got a letter #i wonder who its from