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gashface · 1 year

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SHINE CONTESTANTS

Name: Mandy

Location: Futuristic San Myshuno

Age: 21

Pronouns: She/They

Story: So Mandy is a heavily cyber-augmented girl studying Robotics at the University in a cyberpunk reimagine of the Sims world. In the world she lives in, cyber modification is really common for everyone. She has glowing eyes and while she's usually depicted with a human skin tone she is entirely blue metal underneath. Her fave color is blue so she always has blue on her in some regard. She has albinism. She has a really wacky fashion style that usually consists of oddly matched silhouettes. She's really smart, hence robotics, but has the tenancy to speak without thinking. She LOVES singing and is working on a side music career as she studies, but is struggling to balance her newfound music popularity with her studies.

Created by: @skaterboisims

Name: Parker Winston

Location: Seattle

Age: 25

Pronouns: He/They

Story: My sim is Parker. He's genderfluid but prefers he/him and sometimes they/them. He grew up in a small, very religious town where being queer and loud weren't acceptable things. Being both, he decided to head for Seattle when he was old enough. He's an artist and has dabbled in anything creative he can get his hands on, from drag to tattooing to graffiti, he's done it all. Self-expression is the most important thing in the world to him and he shows that in his style, his art, and his hair dye. And though he likes to cling to his heavy grunge and emo styles, he's never met a color he didn't like or a pattern he wasn't willing to serve with all his heart.

"If I had to describe myself, it would be if like Barbie was in The Crow instead of Brandon Lee." - Parker

Created by: @morgynemberisagenderfluiddaddy

Name: Dillion Carter

Location: Houston, TX

Age: 25

Pronouns: No specific pronouns but they refer to themselves as They/Them, She/Her and He/Him, occasionally.

Story: Dillion's story starts with a graffiti-riddled alleyway. Being abandoned by well-known junkies, a screaming baby was found by the police and then placed into foster care. It was not easy for the first decade of their life. A lot of blood, betrayals, and fistfights were not lost. Eight homes returning her that used to be intrigued. No one had really wanted a child that would barely talk, but also not know when to give up and back down. Until one day, the Carter Family had taken them in as a preteen and had not returned them. It's been history ever since. The adopted family was black and Dillion was as pale as could be, but the whispers did not deter them from growing even closer and loving each other. Dillion's quiet yet useful, bold, and confident demeanour has landed them two jobs: a mechanic and underground boxer by day, and recommended by their sisters in the fashion industry— a model by night. It is those same sisters that had shown them the "Shine" modelling competition and convinced them that it was good exposure. That Dillion was worth so much more than what they had. Dillion responded with a smirk, a shrug, and a "Why not?" They'll just let their body speak for itself.

Created by: @mewo-ita

Name: Rin Miura

Location: Born in Mt. Komorebi but currently living in San Myshuno

Age: 19

Pronouns: She / Her

Story: rin's a college student, an aspiring fashion designer, but most importantly - a loser!! <3 She dreams of creating fashionable pieces for everyone in the world, but gets too caught up in the details, and gets way too carried away .. so she mostly just makes (insane-looking) clothes for herself. she thoroughly documents the entire creation process online; her other hobbies include doll collecting drawing pet training making music cooking baking building furniture and honestly just whatever the hell comes to her mind!!! shes very very happy-go-lucky, sweet but a bit airheaded and also VERY loud :3

Created by: @glittermutt

Name: Eli Sims

Location: Willow Creek

Age: 24

Pronouns: She/her

Story: Elizabeth Gil is the daughter of a famous fashion designer and a famous model, so she's known everything about the industry since she was very little. She always wanted to be a model like her mom and she would watch her during photoshoots and fashion shows. When her parents noticed her interest in the industry to started preparing her for her debut in it. Her first runway gig was at 15 years old for her father's spring couture show. She kept working under him for the next 3 years, barely catching a break, until she turned 18 and immediately left home and her career with her father's brand. She lost contact with her parents and nothing's been heard from her since then. In other news, the latest high-end model Eli Sims, known for her outstanding white hair, is opening the Chanel show at New York fashion week this evening, we wish her the best of luck!

A/N: yeah so basically my sim is a nepo baby that left her family,, changed her appearance and got back in the game all on her own. Her parents don't know she's modelling again, and every time her father has tried to get her on one of his shows she's declined, she does not wanna see them again bc of the awful way they treated her

Created by: @simsinfinitylt

Name: Ember Arendse

Location: San Myshuno

Age: 23

Pronouns: They/Them/Theirs

Story: Growing up in San Myshuno with a very artistically inclined and supportive family, Ember has always taken to all things creative. Lead singer and guitarist of ‘The Gutter Rats’, they always found comfort in expressing themselves in front of an audience, so though their area of expertise lies in freelance photography; They have been curious as to what it would be like to be in front of the camera.

Created by: @wolfrynn313

Name: Charline Morel

Location: Brindleton Bay

Age: 21

Pronouns: She/Her

Story: Charline "Charlie" Morel was born as the first of two daughters to an overly strict wealthy family. The Morels were a family of musicians, and every child born to the family was expected to be a musician, and those in the direct line were expected to inherit the family instrument manufacturing business (or whatever it was, Charlie really couldn't care less). Unfortunately, Charlie did not inherit her family's ear for music - she knew she wanted to be a creative soul, but honestly, she wasn't very good at any of it. Her parents forced her to take singing lessons because it was the only thing musical she was any good at, but she always wanted to do something else. She didn't know what that was until she graduated from high school - she wanted to model. She had tried taking pictures once, but quickly she realized she preferred being in front of the camera instead. So she packed up her belongings and moved out - not terribly far away, but out of her parents' clutches. Charlie is a stubborn, self-assured girl who is determined to prove herself and make a name in something other than music. Once she gets an idea in her head, she is determined to see it through to its finish - or crash and burn trying. (Even if her inner perfectionist cries out in terror at the prospect.)

Created by: @cyazurai

Name: Nicky Soufan

Location: San-Myshuno

Age: 19

Pronouns: she/her

Story: Since childhood, Nicky dreamed of becoming a model. The parents were not happy about this, because they thought that she would become a doctor like them, but they could not interfere with their daughter's desire and tried to help her in any way they could. At the age of 13, they sent her to a modelling school, where the girl stayed for 4 years. Not having received the proper result, the parents took Nicky out of there. She was in despair and did not know what to do now, because the modeling school took away from her all the desire to go to her dream. One day, Nika's friend, a photographer, invited her to his shooting to work on his hand. After this photo shoot, the girl again had a burning desire to become a model.

Created by: @rosamadchen

Name: Willow Young

Location: Willow Creek

Age: 30

Pronouns: she/her

Story: Willow is a new coming Simstuber. She is a mother of one & married to Irving Young. She loves to make art and travel and make woodwork. Willow is a very cheerful woman and she also loves taking photos. As friendly as she seems, she doesn't trust others easily. Willow hopes to become popular and rich. Willow always had an interest in modelling since she read magazines as a child.

Created by: @ohgeezhaddie

Name: Dawn Pepper

Location: StrangerVille

Age: 23

Pronouns: She/They

Story: Dawn is you typical 23 trying to branch out of her comfort zone. Her bold looks usually come from her bold and bizarre surroundings where she grew up. However as he daily part-time job in retail has completely bored her she finally wants to leave her comfort zone, meet new people, and explore new places!

Created by: @bigppton-jpeg

Name: Babylon Fleur Beppu.

Location: Glimmerbrook but was raised in Windenburg.

Age: 18

Pronouns: She/They

Story: Babylon is currently eighteen years old and was born on June 28, making her a Cancerian. Although she isn't aware, she is a fairy born of two ordinary townies. In my Sims Au, fairies are extinct and have been so for many years. She was born in Glimmberbrook but was raised in Windenburg.

Created by: @everythingaestheticlly

Name: Genie Fiorelli

Location: NO INFO PROVIDED

Age: NO INFO PROVIDED

Pronouns: She/Her

Story: NO INFO PROVIDED

Created by: @plumbobcrumble

Name: Su-Yen

Location: Korea

Age: 19

Pronouns: She/Her

Story: Su-yen is the youngest in a family full of models and actors. But Su-yen decided she wanted something else and tried to be a dancer. But now that she is a bit older she decided to follow in her mother's and older siblings' footsteps and do some modelling. The problem? Su-yen is reckless to the extreme. She is constantly injured from skating on trying to do stunts. She is often sporting bandages.

Created by: @dododoesstuffs

THANK YOU, EVERYONE, WHO ENTERED!

A FOLLOW-UP POST IS BEING SENT WITH FIRST WEEKS PROMPT!~

#Shine contestants #ts4 #sims 4 #SHINE #competition #HAVE TO POST IN GROUPS AS TUMBLR WONT LET ME PUT THEM ALL TOGETHER #sims 4 competition #sims4 #TS4 #sims4competition

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trishmishtree · 1 year

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So I just realized that I've made 5 dresses in the 2 years since I started sewing my wardrobe.

This blue silk satin dress was the first dress I ever made and was actually either the first or second article of clothing I ever made. I made it to wear to a friend's wedding and was just kind of winging it with no design in mind. I think I spent a total of 6-7 months working on it on and off. It fits well enough because I took the pattern off a dress that I already owned and had altered to fit me better. But there are definitely issues with the construction and fit if you look closely enough, and I definitely would make different choices to construct it if I were making it today.

This white dress I like to call my modernized chemise a la reine. I made it after stupidly deciding to see if I could shirr fabric by hand. And the conclusion is yes, you *can* do it, but I really don't recommend it unless you want to lose feeling in your hands halfway through but can't stop because you've already committed. If I ever make something similar again, I'll just stick to drawstrings at the neckline, underbust, and waist instead.

(image not found)

The third dress I ever made was actually made for a friend, so I don't have a picture of it. But the takeaway lesson from that was, if you're going to cut a skirt seam on the bias, leave it hanging up to stretch out for a few days before hemming the skirt. And if a dress is going to have a v-neck, try to cut the sides of the v on the straight grain so it doesn't stretch out and gape.

Technically not a dress, so I'm not counting this one towards the 5 dresses, but I wanted to include this blouse and skirt combo because the skirt is still one of my favorite things I've ever made. Only regret is that I made the pockets out of a heavier, stiffer fabric and they make the front of the skirt stick out weirdly. I'll have to rip them out and replace them with a more suitable pocket fabric someday.

The actual fourth dress I've ever made has been on my list of dream dresses to make since I saw the extant 1810s gown that inspired it. It took me a year to make and remake all the underpinnings before I could psych myself up to attempt the actual dress. It was a definitely a mistake to make it from cotton gauze instead of something with a tighter weave, but lesson learned for next time, I guess. And yes, I just about went insane from all the embroidery.

And now here's the fifth dress, which I just finished. It's a v-neck pinafore made from modifying the same pattern that I used for the blue silk dress. It fits like a glove everywhere except in the back, but this isn't a problem unique to this dress. All the dresses in my wardrobe that have a back zipper, including the one I got the pattern from, have this awkward bubble in the back when I wear them, so I think my pattern just needs a sway back adjustment for future projects. This was also my first attempt at pattern matching, and the results...could be better. But it's not too bad if you don't look too closely. Also, I'm glad that I made the bodice a little short-waisted. The fact that the waistband area ends just at the level of my lowest ribs means that the bodice will never crumple or wrinkle weirdly when I bend, because it's being worn against my ribcage instead of the soft, squishy part of my waist. And this time I learned my lesson and cut the edges of the v neck on the straight grain.

#sewing #hand sewing #tricia sews (kind of)

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testingcheats0n · 3 years

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Massive Dream SMP Fic Rec!!

Hey- Hi, I just feel like there are a ton of fanfiction that's really underrated in this fandom- so I'm going to dump it on your dash!!! Most of it is going to be Tommy-centric or SBI-centric, but they are very good!

Source: Me

Finished Fanfics:

Multi-chaptered Fanfics:

that's, like, a hundred miles by No_one_you_know

Dream would kill him. Dream was going to kill him- he was going to- no, he wouldn’t. Dream was his friend- friends don’t hit each other- Dream was supposed to take care of him- Dream /was/ taking care of him.

It hurt to breathe. It hurt to think. He couldn’t clear his thoughts as he stumbled to the family computer, pulling up a tab on google and frantically typing the name into the search bar.

The words Technoblade Watson stared back at him, the little black bar at the end of the letters blinking slowly, mocking him.

Why, of all people, did it have to be Technoblade?

in short: the one where dream sucks as a parental figure, tommy runs away, and visits his least favorite family member technoblade

Hard-hitting, but has a happy ending, though I recommend reading the prequel (in the same series) first, otherwise, it's lowkey depressing.

MORE RECOMMENDATIONS BELOW THE CUT!!

you’ll rise above (crowned by an overture bold and beyond) by azvremoon

Tommy is not sixteen. He has faced too many open wounds, dripping ichor onto blood-stained warzones, to be just a child. He is Blood and War and needless Death, an all-in-one special of everything that can ruin reality.

(Tommy is the blood god. No one should know, but this server can't stop pushing him over the edge.)

+2 more Works that were Inspired by this one

Tommy is a BAMF and Dream, Technblade, and Phil get fucked it is what it is.

Responsible Forever by SilverWing15

“You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.” /////

“So,” Techoblade says, slow and deliberate, his face shows clearly just how unbelievable he finds all of this, “you saw a boy last night, in the middle of the night, living with raccoons and eating our garbage?”

“I know how insane it sounds,” Phil says, “but I know what I saw. We need to help him, who knows how long he’s been out here?”

“Okay,” Wilbur interrupts, “let’s say that raccoon-boy is real. What is it you want us to do? We can’t go searching the woods for specific bunch of raccoons, I don’t know if you’ve noticed Phil but there are a lot of them out there.”

“Going out and hunting him isn’t going to get us anywhere,” Techno says, “we have to let the raccoon-boy come to us. He’s already come once, you know how tenacious raccoons are. If they came to the garbage pit once, they’ll come again. We just have to set a trap.”

“Those raccoons aren’t gonna know what fucking hit them,” Wilbur mutters.

Or: RaccoonInnit taken well beyond its logical conclusion

Tommyinnit is a Raccoon boi that lives with other Raccoons

Protecting the Traumatised Youth by spookyserpent

Sam blinks. “What?”

Even behind the mask, Sam has the distinct impression that Dream is grinning at him. “A week and he was begging for my attention, even after I stole and burnt his armour, even after the beatings. He couldn’t stand me leaving him because I was the only one to show up, to pay him attention. It was hilarious.”

Sam is going to be sick.

Or, Sam decides to ask Dream about his intentions and ends up becoming a big brother to Tommy and Tubbo. All the while, Dream and George fight, Niki and Jack plan child murder and Ranboo is slowly getting adopted into the SBI.

Awesamdad written back when it was possible... ahhh

Chaos In a Bottle by Lovetribable

After a realization, Tommy leaves the pillar, but instead of going to Techno. He just disappears, leaving everyone to think he's gone.

It takes a war to bring him back.

+2 Sequels and an Alternative Ending

Dadinnit!! + A Sympathetic Dream

Absolutely Anything For Them by Numanum

“There’s a lot you don’t understand, Tubbo,” Dream sighs, meeting his eyes cooly. Tubbo, back against a tree, shudders at his tone, at the look on his face.

The sword at his neck skims across his skin as Dream shifts his grip on it, and he flinches back into the rough bark behind him. Dream smiles at his reaction, seeming pleased- like the cat that’s been toying with a mouse that always tries to run no matter how many times it’s caught. And, despite this being his first encounter alone with the man, he thinks that the comparison is fairly accurate; Tubbo has never felt smaller than he does now. There’s supposed to be a buddy system to prevent things like this- he shouldn’t be alone here, stuck in this situation.

Or: Tubbo becomes a traitor to save everyone and has to struggle with his choices

Traitor Tubbo, but it has the happiest ending possible since it follows the rest of the story.

Where Did You Come From, Kit? by KadeAK (zacixn)

Hybrids are an ancient species of humans crossed with animals, blessed with the favour of nature. They used to live in peace on the SMP’s land, but ever since the dawn of humanity’s modern culture, they have become ostracised and hunted by their once-brethren. Now, the once-thriving subspecies of hybrids have been reduced to ashes, the majority of their peoples struggling to survive in a city capital that can't stand their presence.

To the members of L’Manburg, General Wilbur Soot is just another mildly prejudiced human being, stuck with a hybrid fox kit for an adopted child. However, that assumption could not be farther from the truth. As it turns out, there's a reason why he is the man he is today.

This fic is entirely pre-L’Manburg.

Part of a series, very good.

Take It Easy by sweet_magnolias

Five times Techno scared Michael, one time Michael scared him, and the resolution of those fears.

AKA - Techno learns how to be an uncle.

Technoblade's POV, so expect some Tubbo bashing on the margins of all that Michael fluff.

I suppose it’s never my time to die, is it? by Birb_Whale

The first time it happens, he barely remembers. The second time is when he realized. The third... Twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern

“It’s not your time to die yet, Tommy”

Messed up, but not unrealistic. Purely for the Hurt/Comfort lovers.

This Wasn't Planned, But It'll Work Out by Anonymous

Dream isn't sure what to think when he finds a kid on his doorstep, but he can't just leave him there, now can he?

(He doesn't know what he's getting into, or what he's gotten the kid into, either)

Long, and angsty, with a bittersweet ending Imo.

let's play a game by Aria_Cinabun

Tommy was once a slave. That's gone now - shoved in his past with the memories of blood and gore and death. He wants to forget who he was; what he has to do to survive. Of course, the Elementalists will always come back to haunt him. They aren't the ones who killed his mother, but they're close enough. And now he and his brother have been dragged into the mess, as Elementalists with their own, separate covens, to find the Pit - the place where he'd lived and killed and hurt for the first twelve years of his life. His coven can't know. Can't know who he really is, what he can really do. Can't know anything about his past. He doesn't want a coven full of Elementalists who don't trust him; one of whom he's pretty sure despises him. He doesn't want that life. He wants the life of a pickpocket, on the streets, because nobody questions street kids, and nobody comes asking about his past and pushes him to tell his secrets that he holds closest inside. Tubbo tries to tell him to trust people. But trust is how you die.

Good fantasy AU, has SBI, and is thus fluffy.

Turn of the Tide by SilverWing15

Tommy’s fins twitch at the mention of Dream’s ancestors. Dream talks about them a lot, how they made their fortune hunting down mer pods, how they were cruel and greedy. Nothing like Dream is. They’ve both overcome their roots he says.

Tommy is nothing like the wild mer out in the ocean, who spend their lives scraping by just to survive, who kicked him out of the pod when he was a baby because he was too small. He’s also better than the pit mer, who can’t overcome their wild instincts and know nothing but fighting.

He’s different from them, he’s better than them. He’s Dream’s. //// OR: Change is like the tide, when it comes, you can only sink or swim. You would think that a mer would be better at keeping afloat.

Mermaid AU Pooog. Part of a series.

One-Shots:

Snapped by AmberRunnel

“You don’t know what I went through in that prison cell.”

Jack burst out laughing, blinded with rage and the overwhelming urge to hurt Tommy, to give him everything he deserved. “Oh, is the poor child traumatized? You want pity now?” He twisted his blade, and Tommy’s axe was sent clattering to the ground.

“If the prison was so awful, why don’t I send you back there?”

-|-

Jack doesn't handle Tommy's revival well. There's a simple solution, though. Kill Tommy, and Dream revives him right back into that cell. Problem solved, kid dealt with.

It takes a few confrontations for Jack to realize he's an asshole.

It's fucked up, but god does it hurt in a good way.

the sky is coming down blue by salinesolution

An imagining of New Milo's perspective throughout the Skyblock Randomizer adventure. What did he think of the world he found himself in, and how did Wilbur's feelings and actions change things for him? Here's my way of answering those questions.

He made the fish think, funniest shit I've seen.

You told me to be a hero (so let me die like one) by spiromachia

"You told me to die like a hero," the blond interrupted, spinning on his heel to face the others, holding his arms wide open, "So why not fulfil the ending that was always meant to be."

Across the battle field, through the chaos and destruction, a tree burned.

Even the sound of explosions and cries and bloodshed felt distant enough for the world to become silent for a few moments, each individual slowly coming to the same conclusion, each of their bodies tensing.

Tommy's face broke out into a grin as he lowered his head, glowering at the people around him, and Philza's face flashed with recognition.

"Kill me."

Or... In the middle of Doomsday, Tommy decides to ask Technoblade to be the Lycomedes to his Theseus.

Heavy and dark, but at least Dream gets it.

tomorrow night by meridies

Tommy is desperately searching for his missing brother. Techno is the reluctant psychic who unfortunately got dragged along.

or, two people, more alike than different, learn what it is to have a family at their side.

It's cute what can I say :]

maple syrup by itisjosh

"We could run," Tubbo stares at the sun. "We've got everything we've ever wanted right here. We could run."

"Yeah," Tommy agrees, feeling his head swim. "We could."

(or, tommy and tubbo run away together)

Children get away from toxic adults :)

Why’d it have to be so sunny? (The sun shouldn’t shine without you.) by AToZRainToBe

‘A realisation hits Phil in the face like a truck. “Wi- Ghostbur,” Phil says, turning to his grey-scale, translucent, actually-dead son. “You definitely told Tubbo that Tommy’s alive, right?”’

To get away from Dream, Tommy agrees to fake his death, going with the cover story that he jumped from the pillar in Logstedshire. Unfortunately, someone forgot to tell Tubbo.

Misunderstandings are one of my favorite tropes.

sugar and ice by princedemeter for Aenqa

“He is my son,” Philza says. “Mortal or not, I would see him grow strong.”

Technoblade looks down on earth, at the tiny, angry bundle of cloth and pinking, wrinkled skin. This mortal child, he thinks, lungs filled with breath from the king of gods himself, will not grow strong.

It's mostly centered around Technoblade and Wilbur with Phil being a shitty dad. Pog Gods AU.

a matter of time by meridies

Tommy is twelve years old when his wings first appear, and he is twelve years old when Phil tells him, "All it takes is time and patience, Tommy, and soon you'll be flying even better than me."

or, Tommy grows up feeling like a failure, and it takes him a while to figure out where he's happiest.

Tommy is just finding his place in the world. Powers AU.

That Time a Baby Decided to Raise a Baby by Scitrust

Tubbo wasn't good at making excuses, so when Schlatt asked him why he was leaving in the night, he made something up on the spot. That had been months ago.

At least he sort of had an alibi for that, now.

Or, in which Tubbo finds a baby in the woods on his way to see Tommy, and promptly adopts it.

Part of a collection!! Read it all.

spider lily by blue000jay

Wilbur has a body.

The freckle on the base of his left pinky finger (shared with Techno). The scar on his chin from when he was twelve and over ambitious, diving into too-shallow water. The scar on his throat from the final control room, and the puckered skin on his shoulder from the poisoned arrow that killed him next. Various other nicks and things that litter his skin from years of rebellion and living wild, a kid thrown into a vicious world with too little self-preservation.

(Resurrection AU, for when/if Wilbur comes back.)

The author knows how it's like to live with chronic pain, and it shows :(

Hands tied loose by rabiddog

"Let's run away, Tubbo." Tommy breathed; a wide grin split across his face as his hope grew. "Let's get out of here – far away. We can go anywhere, can't we? Let's just go, you and me right here, right now."

Tommy needs to leave. He has to get out of L'Manburg, he has to leave the Dream SMP for his own sanity, and he wants Tubbo to come with him.

But Tubbo has a family now, a better life - something that he can't give up... not even for his best friend.

Unhappy ending :(

The serpent underneath by rabiddog

Tommy and Techno sit at the memory-filled bench and talk. Technoblade reminisces, he talks, he admits his pent-up feelings, he cries. And Tommy? Tommy listens. (That's all he can do.)

“I’m sorry for everything, you know? For all of it. I’m so sorry about... about the first war, about the withers and the fighting, about...” Technoblade's fingers began to curl around Tommy’s blonde locks. “About Wilbur and everything after. I'm so, so sorry.”

:((((((((

Damning choices by rabiddog

Ranboo would have never expected to find himself in a horrifying situation such as that one - quite literally sandwiched between a rock and a hard place, with three lives dangling over his head and the answer on the tip of his tongue.

Tubbo, Michael, Tommy.

It's his choice. He chooses who lives, and who dies. His new family, or his first friend. But Ranboo... Ranboo already knows.

"Ranboo," He hissed out, voice cracking and somewhat staticky, "It's not your fault. It's not. You had no other choice; I know that, okay? I- I know that- I know- I know..."

:(((((((((((((((((((((((((((

Jealousy is a disease by rabiddog

Tommyinnit isn't new to the idea of jealousy. He understands it completely. He understands the way it runs rampage through his body each time he catches even a glimpse of Tubbo and Ranboo's new relationship, he understands that the emotion makes his heart clench uncomfortably from time to time. He sees it, feels it, and yet he doesn't care.

He doesn't care at all.

"You took Tubbo away from me. You took him away. You took my best friend, and now he's- now he's not my best friend anymore, and I-!"

Word of Honour by rabiddog

Tommy could only stand and stare as Technoblade agreed to hand him over to Dream - as his brother traded him off like he was nothing. Like Tommy wasn't important.

Technoblade was a man of honour. He was a man of pride and sticking to his word. He knew that he owed Dream a favour, and no matter what that favour might be, he'd be compliant with it. Nothing would change his mind. (Not even Tommy.)

Almost canon. F.

Sweet Repentance by rabiddog

Perhaps Tommy should have told Phil about his arguably life-threatening injury the minute his father had opened the door. But of course, Tommy being Tommy, did not.

Dying seemed like a nice enough option as long as he was with his family.

Tommy just wanted acceptance, forgiveness, and peace. He wanted to close his eyes for the last time and finally be able to let go.

Tommy dies painfully.

A White Tulip by astervoid

He picked the white tulip from the bottom of the stem, standing up carefully as he held it pinched between his fingers. It would die now, inevitably, but Tommy relented and held the flower to his chest. What a silly, stupid thing to ground him. He almost hated that it made his breaths come easier and his steps feel lighter. Almost.

Tommy & Ranbooo chill on the bench.

lying to the authorities (again) by touchgrass

"Please tell me that my right-hand-man, my soon-to-be vice president, one of the people I trust the most on this godforsaken server, did not lie straight to my face and tell me he was twenty-fucking-years-old.”

Tommy opened his mouth to protest, but then closes it shut at the furious look on Wilbur's face. Oops.

It is the day of the elections and Wilbur Soot could not have chosen a worser time to realize that half his staff is underage.

The ONLY fic with this premise I've seen on Ao3.

Dear Theseus by rabiddog

Tommy had thought that they'd won - thought that they'd finally beaten Dream, and that everything would be okay. As it turns out, however, apparently Dream had called in that favour from Technoblade after all.

“Please,” Tommy whispered after a beat, quivering hands edged upwards to hesitantly press against the tip of the sword striking through his chest. Why, why, why? Why him? Why now?

Tommy almost wins.

A Shifting World by AplusIsRoman

How was Wilbur supposed to know it would end like this?

The smoke hung in the air and soot clung to his skin. His brother - adopted, but older by two minutes - stood back-to-back with him. The chilling cries of people and the calls of the withers rang through the air above the chasm that was once his home.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

How could he have known this would happen?

Sequel to A Child's World

Age-swap AU. Has a prequel.

heart of the sea by RyDyKG

Here is the secret that he barely thinks about, a secret that he shoves deep and far down in himself:

Wilbur Soot is a siren, and he’s not exactly proud of that fact.

Wilbur-centric. Urban Fantasy AU.

He knows, ok? by Ralli

By some means, Techno has given his raccoon younger brother some cotton candy. It doesn’t end as well as either of them would like.

Very, very cute :)

that's it, it's split (it won't recover) by Jk_Kat

Tommy has always been the fighter.

He has never been the fought for, and he knows it, with every whisper Tubbo directs at Ranboo, with every glance thrown his way- Tommy knows, the way he wishes he didn't, that they think he's dead.

If they're so convinced he's still dead, maybe the one good thing left he can do for them is die.

---

Or, Tommy gets addicted to being dead and thinks that nobody cares about him. The people who very much do try to pull him back from the brink before Dream can't resurrect him anymore.

Messed up, but with a happy ending.

Hugs 'n PTSD by rabiddog

Ranboo knew from the start that the recovery process would be hard - that moving on from quite literally being beat to death would be something hugely difficult to step away from, and that's if Tommy could even manage it at all.

He knew that it would be stressful and arduous, demanding and tough... he just hadn't expected to be holding Tommy through a PTSD-induced panic attack only days after his release from Pandora's Vault.

Ranboo isn't typically an overbearingly protective person. But for Tommy? He just might be.

I love this author if you can't tell.

Big Men don't cry by Shiny22Snivy

The room is small and warm, almost stifling compared to the cool openness of the ravine. It’s cosy and candlelit, and a chest sits open in the corner, full of what looks to be burnt rags of a former smart suit. And sitting in rumpled blankets on a bed, cradling a mug of something steaming, sits Tubbo.

At first, Tommy forgets all about Niki’s vague warning. He’s just so happy to see his best friend again, alive and well and all in one piece. Tubbo’s okay. Tubbo’s okay, and in front of him, and suddenly everything bad in the world is gone, if only for just a moment.

“Tommy?”

And then Tubbo turns to look at him.

Clingyduo fluff.

sins of the father (i broke all my bones that day i found you) by ryter

The thing that hurt Wilbur most was when he saw Fundy tear down the walls of L'Manburg. After all, those walls had gone up to protect his son. But in this world, Fundy trusts his father just a little bit more, and it ruins him.

Or: there's only one way Wilbur never becomes the villain. It's unclear whether this was the better path.

SOME VIOLENCE WARNINGS/BLOOD MENTION. CHARACTER DEATH. SO MUCH ANGST.

Sad, but cathartic.

REVIVED TOMMY HEADCANNONS AHAHAHAHA by racooninnit

i’m dropping ALL the fucking revived tommy headcannons on you guys today get ready for some ANGST

this is different from what i usually post but it was fun

i don’t think there’s a lot i need to put warnings for, obviously there are mentions of the way tommy died and the aftermath of that (i.e. injuries and trauma), but if there’s anything that needs a warning please tell me!

What it says on the tin- not really a fic.

Unfinished Stories:

Ongoing (Less than a month since the last update):

Over the River Styx by CorpseArt

I feel like we should name him.

There’s a scuffle at the back of his mind as he rolls up, curling tight with a shiver despite the heat of the flames licking up his back.

I mean, he’s like – us, but like a worse version clearly because oh man, this is just weirdness. There’s a flare of a tangle of emotions, complicated and fearful, resentful and livid with anger. I can’t believe this is what I’ve been reduced to, stuck in the mind of this- this child.

He’s like your age, Tommy. Are you calling yourself a child?

I mean, I am one so fucking duh. Child murderer.

Or: trauma bonding in the most unconventional of senses.

Just- Read it. Show the writer your support, it's unique, it's amazing and there needs to be more of it.

If history is dead and gone by iregretallmydecisions

“Don’t come any fucking closer,” Tommy shouted, startling Phil into stepping back. Tommy was still looking around wildly, like a trapped animal “Don’t fucking do it.” ---- In which Tommy finds himself faced with his splintered family, while it was still mostly whole. The past is not an easy place to be when the future was not kind. His family is forced to deal with the fall out.

It's better than Rewind, but you didn't hear that from me.

Wilbur Soot's Redemption (OR Ghostbur's Retry) by luckykitty0523

Wilbur had many regrets in his life, being lost in his madness and the urge for revenge drowned leaving a shell of who he once was. It was only in his dying moments that he regained himself but it was already too late for him leaving him drowning in wishes and regrets. However waking up in another different universe where wilbur was never born and family soulmates exist, so when wilbur said he wanted to fix the mistakes he never expected this turn of events.

In one world wilbur dies and he would return as a ghost missing his memory and trying to fix what he did in life but in this one wilbur dies and wakes up in another world where soulmates exist and the wilbur of that world was never born so wilbur/ghostbur takes his place and tries to make up his mistakes to the other version of his friends.

Wilbur adopts SBI + Fundy + Dream.

A Talk Long Overdue by penink

Tommy has his first therapy session with Puffy.

Tommy gets therapy.

Into the Night by Interjection

“Don’t touch me,” Tommy hisses, leaning against the railing. “I will - I will-”

They’re a hundred stories up. Wind lashes against Phil’s face. Next to him, Sam makes choked noise.

“But why?”

Tommy looks up to meet Phil’s eyes, terror struck so deep in those pale blue irises Phil thinks they must hold all the world’s fears within them.

“You’ll die,” he whispers. “And then I’ll die. But I’ll come back.”

“And I don’t want to come back.”

Others have the freedom to live. Tommy doesn’t even have the freedom to die.

But maybe they can teach him that living doesn’t have to be so bad.

---

(Superpowers AU where whenever someone touches Tommy, they both die. But Tommy will always come back to life eventually. He just wants it to end - but instead, he’s on the run, terrified of how his power will be exploited if he’s caught.

A few people reluctantly team up to save him.)

Funky SBI dynamics + a Sam that cares. Also a lot of angst.

#dream smp #dream smp fic rec #fic rec #sbi #wilbur soot #tommyinnit

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zaffrenotes · 3 years

Text

[RoD] Pixel Person MPC Tutorial - Part 1 - Supplies

I intended to just share the patterns for the Pixel People version of the RoD characters for @rodappreciationweek but a few folks expressed interest in more detailed instructions, so I spent entirely too much time writing up a How To guide because I'm a nerd. and a craft nerd. and then realized it was way too much information for one video, so I split it into 3 parts.

Part 1 will go over supplies, and includes the patterns, with a color chart. Part 2 will show you how I stitch one of the pixel people, and Part 3 will go over how to finish your project to display and/or wear.

First off, here's the shopping list to start things off - feel free to save this to your phone so you can refer to it when looking for stuff online/in person at your local craft store. JoAnn's will have 99% of the list, Michael's will have maybe 80%, and anything you can't find in person you can order online - while Amazon carries nearly all of these things, I highly recommend 123stitch.com as a specialized store. They carry an insane amount of inventory and they ship orders fast.

FABRIC

Aida (pronounced "eye-duh," "eye-ee-duh," or "ay-duh") is the fabric most commonly associated with cross stitching, especially for beginners. It's a stiff, gridded fabric with evenly spaced holes to pass the needle through. It's easiest to find in white, but it comes in other colors, and it's sold in a variety of "counts," which refers to the number of stitches in an inch. 11 or 14 count is good for beginners, 16 count or higher is good to include a lot of detail in a smaller workspace. DMC, Charles Craft, and Sensations are good brands.

Cotton is another option if you don't like the appearance of Aida. This can be any solid or patterned design you like, but aim for a quilting weight if this is your first time stitching. Something like cotton jersey would have too much stretch. Kona Cotton has a nice weave, but nearly anything in the quilting cotton section will work.

Linen is a third option, and the material I personally like to use for hand embroidery. It can have a very open weave or a tighter weave closer to cotton, and often includes "imperfections" where some of the threads are thick in spots, adding a textured feel to the material.

If you decide to stitch on cotton, linen, or a finished product like a sweatshirt or cloth napkin, you'll want to add Waste Canvas to your list. It looks similar to Aida cloth with the grid pattern, but you lay it over your fabric and use it as a template to create the same even stitching as you'd get with Aida. You can then remove it by dampening the work area and pulling the waste canvas threads out one by one; if it's a soluble version, you can submerge the finished piece in warm water to 10-20 minutes and the canvas will dissolve into the water. DMC and Charles Craft are good brands.

Additionally, for any cross stitch done on something that will be worn/washed with regular use (clothing, towels, napkins, etc.) you'll want to get Fusible Interfacing that will protect that backside of the material and aid in locking the stitches in place. It's sold on bolts in JoAnn's, typically near the cutting station in most of their stores. It looks like tissue paper, where one side is smooth and the other side is bumpy/textured. The bumps are glue that gets activated with a combination of heat and water (you will need an iron for this). You won't need much; a 1/4 yard strip would be more than enough. You just need enough to cover the stitched area of your finished piece. Pellon brand in P44 is something I use for all kinds of sewing projects. Do yourself a favor and find the discount/scrap bin near the cutting station or search the pre-cut fat quarters in the quilting aisle and pick something white/light colored to use as a pressing cloth.

EMBROIDERY HOOP/FRAME FOR STITCHING

Aida is generally pretty stiff on its own not to need a frame, but a hoop/frame is nice to use to keep the oils on your fingers from getting into the fabric (and it's nice to be able to hold something for a large pattern). Cotton and linen are too soft/flexible to stitch on their own, especially if you want tight and even stitches, so you'll definitely want a hoop in that case.

Hoops can either be wood, plastic, or sometimes metal. I prefer using wood, but feel free to get whatever you like. Anything larger than an 8" hoop will be cumbersome to hold in your hand, but aim for a hoop that gives you extra space outside of the dimensions of your pattern. For example, one pixel person on 14-count Aida will measure about 3/4 inch x 2.25 inches; one person on 8-count will measure 1 inch x 4 inches. If you're stitching the whole crew, an 8" hoop should be fine.

If you plan to display your finished piece in a hoop, pick up more than one - one to display, the other to use for stitching.

If you really get into cross stitch, something like a Q-snap frame will be kinder to your fabric while you work. Q-snaps are plastic tubes that form either a square or rectangular frame, and come with clamps to hold fabric in place. You can then roll the clamp to tighten the fabric if it loses tension while you stitch, versus pulling the fabric in a hoop to readjust tension, which can sometimes warp the stitches. Q-snaps are more expensive than hoops though. In the photo I have pieces of felt that I layer over the fabric, to give the clamps more of a grip and to protect the fabric.

SCISSORS

Pretty self-explanatory - you want a large-ish pair to cut and trim your fabric, waste canvas, and/or interfacing to size. They can be fancy dressmaker shears or utility scissors; just make sure they're nice and sharp.

You'll also want a smaller pair of embroidery/needlework snips to trim thread. Nail scissors would also work. PS - decorative snips are very cute and if you're like me you'll want to collect them just for fun, lol

EMBROIDERY FLOSS AND NEEDLES

Embroidery Floss - DMC and Anchor are the brands easiest to find in stores. I prefer DMC due to the wide variety of colors, and colorfastness even after years of use. You'll want the standard 6-strand skeins from either brand for cross stitch; don't mess with the corded perle cotton (I know they're pretty, but we want the smoother skeins so we can pull the threads apart later). I suggest going with DMC since not all the colors I used in my patterns have an equivalent shade in Anchor's inventory.

Embroidery and/or Tapestry needles are different from the standard sewing needles you might already have at home in a sewing kit (though sewing needles will come in handy for part of the process too). The eyes on embroidery/tapestry needles are larger to accommodate for multiple threads at once, or even silk ribbons for fancy embroidery work. There are tons of articles online that go into detail about the difference between needle sizes and when to use them, but the main difference is embroidery needles are usually longer and have sharper points to literally stab a hole through fabric; tapestry needles are shorter/thinner and have blunt (but still sharp if you poke your finger) points to go through open weaves. Pick up a pack to have multiple colors of floss threaded while you work; Clover, Bohin, and DMC are all good brands.

(not pictured) Bobbins - Little paper or plastic pieces used to wrap and store excess floss. They're good if you want to organize your floss in a floss box, and for labeling floss if you're working on something with a lot of colors.

[click to enlarge] Above is the chart that tells you all the different colors you'll need to get for each character. If you plan to do multiple characters that use some of the same numbers, it's fine to just pick up one skein of that color; you're only using a small portion of the floss so it will last you a VERY long time 😅

(I know the image quality sucks, but tumblr maxes out at 10 images per post. This breaks down where each floss color is used, depending on the character/outfit. You can view/download the patterns from my Google drive here to save to your phone or tablet, and use as a reference when stitching.

EXTRAS (FOR FINISHING YOUR STITCHING)

If you're a crafter of many things like me, you might already have some of this stuff in your home. I'll go into more detail on how/when to use these items in Part 3, but add what you need to your supply list to get everything in one go...

Sewing thread and sewing needles - nothing super fancy, just pick a thread in a contrasting color from whatever color your fabric is (e.g. stitching on white Aida? use green or navy thread.)

Chipboard or Mat board - pick up a sheet only if you're going to frame your finished piece in a picture frame where you pull the back out to open it. It's a thick fiber board that looks like cardboard. If you can't find any, the back material of a sketchpad will work, or you can use 2 layers from a cereal box for a less expensive DIY option.

Binder clips - you'll use these to hold fabric in place against the chipboard if you're framing your project in a picture frame.

Cardstock - optional if you plan to display your project in an embroidery hoop or front loading picture frame. You'd glue this to the backside of the hoop and/or layer over the stitched fabric to hide the raw edges.

Clothespins - if you plan to display your project in a hoop, clothespins will help press the fabric to the inner hoop while the glue dries.

Glue - only if you plan to display your project in a hoop. Fabric, tacky, craft, or hot glue; whatever your personal preference is.

PREP THE RED FLOSS

I can't speak for Anchor brand floss, but the red floss colors for DMC brand have a tendency to bleed onto fabric if the threads get wet. It's an annoying and painstaking effort to remove the stain from the fabric without removing color from nearby floss once a piece is already stitched, so I proactively wash my red floss if I plan to stitch on anything other than black fabric.

If you're stitching on Aida, you can probably skip this step since you won't need to wet the fabric. If you're stitching on something that uses waste canvas and the pixel person you're stitching has red in their pattern (Colt's red pants, MC's plaid flannel, MC's tube top, MC's red leather jacket) keep reading.

In a clean cup, add some warm water with a couple drops of dishwashing soap. Remove the paper bands from the floss skein and drop the floss in, soaking all the threads. Gently swirl the water in the cup to work it into the fibers, or carefully use your finger/a chopstick/end of a paintbrush to agitate the water without messing up the floss too much. After a minute or so, dump the water and rinse the floss until you no longer see soap bubbles when you give it a little squeeze. Lay it down on a clean cloth or towel somewhere to air dry.

Get ready for Part 2, where I'll show you how to stitch a mini MPC!

#rodaw #rod appreciation week #rodaw day six: wildcard #cross stitch info #zaffrenotes makes things #i am also a wordy bitch #so this is a long post with lots of details #and if you read all the way through I appreciate and love you for letting me ramble on and on #...for fifTEEN pages. FRONT AND BACK 😉#not really 15 pages #google docs says my notes for all three parts is 9 pages

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mr-entj · 3 years

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Hello! Mind if you elaborate more on the “artsy TP/technical FP” paragraph in this ask?

Being ENFP myself, I think I already know why this is the case. BUT it doesn’t hurt to hear your input too because you articulate your thoughts so well🤣🤣🤣 Whenever I look through “recommended careers for ENFPs” on mbti sites, I oddly never related to them…they’d always state that “artistic or creative-based” careers are ideal or that “traditional” jobs are too rigid. But after seeing your explanation, everything made MUCH more sense. I genuinely like computer science and finance (I’m an MIS major). Is the coursework extremely difficult sometimes? Yes. Does it make me go insane sometimes? YES! Not gonna lie, I’ve cried many times while trying to even pass my classes because of the need of getting things done (versus my inner battle of crushing my procrastination relapses🤮).

But in the end, I develop a deeper appreciation for it because of that adrenaline-inducing feeling of skill acquisition. It feels like I'm taking ahold of my tertiary Te and exercising it. It’s that feeling of becoming a more esteemable being and assuring myself that I am preparing myself for a better future. My tertiary Te feels like a gift. Even though I’m far from perfect and have a long way to go, I still love my major and have no regrets choosing it. 💓 Being around other high Te users honestly hurts sometimes (my ISTJ older sister)…but it’s also their bittersweet stinging that propels me to do better. 💖

[happily shows up to my future job wearing all pink and jotting down notes from meetings in my pink notebook and my fluffy pink pen🥰💅🏼uwu]

I appreciate the arts and I appreciate nonprofit/social work too. But I could never see myself approaching these as full-time careers, but more as hobbies or a side-job. I was never really the artsy-fartsy type, but I definitely respect such folks from afar 💘 This makes me wonder how my fellow ENTP neighbors develop their tertiary Fe which would soon lead them to those said artistic careers?

Sure. People are people, they'll use their functions to process information in patterns aligned with their type, but final decisions are nuanced and different for each person. I just happen to have this weird combination of: 1) exposure to way too many people and 2) a knowledge of typology so I'm actively looking for patterns. Type doesn't determine career choice or success, but data does inform trends.

The reason why xxFPs are highly represented in artistic careers is because those careers more likely allow them a high amount of freedom for self-expression and authenticity. In many cases, creative careers can also give them flexibility to manage their own time (i.e. freelance writer, freelance artist) so they're not committed to a specific company where they can feel easily suffocated by externally imposed routines, projects, and deadlines.

With xxFPs, the common trend is less that they're all artistic/creative savants-- far from it-- and more that high Fi selects careers using an ‘inside out’ method that’s the opposite of the high Te method. For that reason, xxFPs are far more likely to try and turn hobbies into paying careers than just about any other MBTI type because these are passion pursuits defined by their internal preferences, values, and priorities.

The deciding factor is less the type of career (artistic vs. technical) and more how the underlying mission/impact resonates with the xxFP’s values.

#mbti #myers briggs #enfp #infp #esfp #isfp #typology #careers #mbtiq #mine #faq

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femsolid · 2 years

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As someone who is diagnosed with borderline I do kinda feel like it can be compared to the idea of hysteria but it doesnt really change my behavior or why I'm acting the way I am, the behavior has to have a cause even if the term borderline is worthless 🤔 I just wonder what it could be

I can't answer that for you, it's usually something you work through with time, it requires a lot of self awareness which doesn't happen in one day. But nothing we do is meaningless. And as women, it can be extremely difficult to navigate a misogynistic world while remaining obedient and quiet. Most of the women I have seen diagnosed with bpd had ptsd from male violence and their "symptoms" were simply a reaction to it.

I tend to always recommend trauma informed therapists because even if you don't suffer from ptsd they are the kind of therapists who will look at the cause of the behaviour instead of just saying your brain is fucked up and put you on meds. I don't know how you're acting and if it's very problematic in itself, sometimes it can be a sane reaction to an insane environment.

I can advise paying close attention to the situations you were in when certain problematic behaviours emerged until you notice a pattern. Then you can decide if your behaviour really was problematic and take steps to be more aware next time (or to prevent ending up in these sorts of situations again if possible). You can also observe what part of your behaviour could be a coping technique you adopted to protect yourself. Certain coping mechanisms help us in certain situations but can be inapropriate and even harmful in others. Also watch out for self destructive behaviours: ironically it can be an attempt at protecting yourself as well. If you expect to be hurt then self destructive behaviours can make you avoid taking a risk by ruining your chances or creating conflicts for example, it can precipitate the downfall of a situation just to get it over with.

What I've learned is that in most situations our brain is not trying to work against us, it's trying to use everything it has learned to protect us and sometimes it can backfire. But if you are told the problem is your personality, which is "disordered", then suddenly you're the problem. You can't work on the real issues because your brain is "wrong". I don't see how this label can be helpful.

#ask #psy #bpd

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inevitably-johnlocked · 3 years

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Hey steph!! This might be a specific ask but could u like recommend me some fic thats like slow burn, unresolved sexual tension, and some bottomlock. And please please please let it be long so that it hits the sweet spot of satisfying your fic needs but also not stupidly long. Also I love your blog

Hi Lovely!!

AHHHH I’m glad you enjoy!! I try my best, LOL.

AHH I’ve SO MANY slow burn fics, it’s ridiculous, and I do have separate lists for bottomlock, so I can direct you to those.... BUT I DON’T HAVE A LIST FOR MY U.S.T. FICS YES. So can I do that??? Please??? ANY EXCUSE TO START A NEW LIST :| Hee hee. Forgive me???

AND as per usual, all my fics are in word-count order, so you can start at the bottom and work your way up, hee hee. CHEERS!

As usual, add your own, friends!!

First, here’s the lists you asked for:

Love Confessions / Slow Burn / Dev. Rel. (Fluff Version)

Falling In Love / Slow Burn / Dev. Rel. || [MOBILE POST] (April 2019)

Platonics & Domestics Pt 2 / Hugs, Cuddles & Kisses Pt. 3 / Tooth-Rotting Fluff Pt. 5 / Love Confessions, Slow Burn & Dev. Rel. Pt. 2 / Established Relationship Pt. 3

Slow Burn / Dev. Rel. / Falling in Love Pt. 3 (Nov. 2019)

Slow Burn / Dev Rel. Pt. 4 (Apr 2020)

Bottomlock (April 2019)

Bottomlock Pt 2

And now, check out my UST/URT list :)

UNRESOLVED SEXUAL / ROMANTIC TENSION

The Other Shoe by thewaitwasworthitlove - (NR, 1,053 w., 1 Ch. || Pining Sherlock, Angst, URT, Post-TSo3) - Sherlock realizes how deep in love he has fallen for John. Only Sherlock Holmes would manage to be more shattered than crystal dropped on concrete.

Clarity by socomessnow (thoughtfulwishing) (NR, 1,283 w., 1 Ch. || Post-HLV, POV Sherlock, Pining Sherlock, Tarmac Scene, Stream of Consciousness, URT, First Person Present Tense, Implied/Referenced Drug Use) - During-and-post-HLV piece tracking Sherlock’s thought process from his phone call with Mycroft to his return to the airfield. Part 1 of Rifts

Untouchable by greengrapegaze (T, 1,368 w., 1 Ch. || Pre-S3, UST/URT, Oblivious John, Lonely Sherlock, Angst with Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt / Comfort, Emotional Sherlock, POV Sherlock, Pining Sherlock) – “He never would. Petty, childish, immature-bitter. Jealous. She had all that he wanted. All he could never have.” Part 1 of Steps to a Bittersweet Symphony

Love Hurts by Grac3 (T, 2,215 w., 1 Ch. || Magical Realism, Pining Sherlock, One-Sided Pining / URT, Sherlock / John Whump, Angst, Ambiguous Ending) – In a world where someone's physical injuries manifest themselves on the person who is in love with them, John didn't think that there would ever be anyone who was willing to risk falling in love with him - until he got shot on a case, and it didn't hurt. Unrequited Johnlock.

The Dance Lesson by bittergreens (G, 4,596 w., 1 Ch. || TSo3 Missing Scene, Dancing, Pining Sherlock, URT/UST, Romance, Angst, POV John) – Sherlock teaches John to dip. Part 1 of Goodnight, Vienna

There's Something Living in These Lines by teahigh (orphan_account) (M, 4,676 w., 1 Ch. || Mutual Pining, Love Letters, Angst, Mutual Pining, UST / URT, Dirty Talk) – Two men, complete opposites in almost every way, who speak only in letters and pages torn from books.

You Can't Always Get What You Want by hubblegleeflower (E, 4,804 w., 1 Ch. || Pining, Sexual Tension, UST / RST, First Time) – John wants. He always has, but now that he's living with Sherlock again, it's all he can do to hold it back. And Sherlock isn't helping...

Wasted Hours by songlin (E, 4,973 w., 1 Ch. || Omegaverse || O!John/A!Sherlock, Pining, UST, Angst & Porn) – John is respectful. John keeps his distance. He doesn’t look at Sherlock when Sherlock decides trousers are for dull people. He doesn’t breathe in and savor it when Sherlock flings himself onto the couch first thing in the morning, wafting alpha scent, dressing gown settling around him in a cloud of blue silk. He doesn’t linger when he’s piecing Sherlock back together after a fight, even though he’s half-dressed and beautiful and right there. He can ignore it. He can control it.

Captain John Watson, Genetics, and Other Crazy Things by cyerus (M, 5,581 w., 1 Ch. || Torchwood Crossover || Humour / Crack, Jealous Sherlock, Sexual Magnet John, Captain John, UST / RST, Three Continents Watson) – The explanation for John "Three Continents" Watson? Jack Harkness is his father. Sherlock doesn't know whether he's going to die from jealousy or sexual frustration first.

No Light, No Light (in your bright blue eyes) by orphan_account (G, 5,915 w., 1 Ch. || Angst, Pining, Songfic, Mutual Unrequited Love, Unresolved Tension, UST/URT) – Relates to both Sherlock's and John's feelings for each other and highlights select moments of hurt and inner turmoil starting from right before the fall all the way to HLV.

Drawstring by May_Shepard (E, 7,412 w., 1 Ch. || Post S3/TAB, Friends to Lovers, UST/RST, Fluff and Smut, Post-TAB, John POV, Sherlock’s Pyjamas, Rimming, Wanking) – John is bothered by Sherlock’s slowly-falling jim-jams… as in hot and bothered and he is trying to deal with a sexy dishevelled Sherlock while also keeping his pining in check.

High and Tight, Soft and Loose by cwb (E, 7,429 w., 1 Ch. || Jealous John, Miscommunications / Misunderstandings, First Kiss / Time, BAMF John, Insecure Sherlock, Clueless Sherlock, POV John, Embarrassed John, Adorable Sherlock, Junk Size, UST / RST) – John pressed the knuckle of his index finger against his mouth and sighed. “So, you're coiled like a spring and ready to be ... sprung?” “If you want to be pedestrian about it, yes.” “Like I said, you should do something about that.” “And like I said, pedestrian. What would you have me do? Take up jogging? Yoga? Oh! Unless you mean –” “I don't mean anything. Let’s drop it.”

Alone On the Water by Mad_Lori (G, 7,725 w., 1 Ch. || MCD, UST/URT, Angst, Euthanasia, Love Confessions) – Sherlock Holmes never expected to live a long life, but he never imagined that it would end like this.

All the Times Something ALMOST Happened by allonsys_girl (T, 9,049 w., 6 Ch. || POV Sherlock, Pining Sherlock, Canon Compliant, Angst, Friendship/Love, UST) – John and Sherlock dancing around what they dance around in canon.

Someone I Love by hudders-and-hiddles (M, 10,002 w., 2 Ch. || Canon Compliant, HLV-Filler Fic, Pre-Slash, Jealous John, PIning Sherlock, Angst & Fluff, UST/URT, Dog Tags) – John gets married and Sherlock finds comfort in wearing John's identity tags around his wrist.

Ravish Me by amalnahurriyeh (E, 10,025 w., 1 Ch. || UST / RST, Makeup / Lipstick, Sympathetic Sally, Experiments, Pining John, First Kiss, Face Fucking / BJ’s, Cuddling) – Sherlock is experimenting with patterns of wear on lipstick in daily encounters. John is going to go insane.

Their Great Reward by BeautifulFiction (T, 10,095 w., 1 Ch. || UST, First Kiss, Fluff) – Boxing day, in John's opinions, is the worst day of the year. Christmas is over, the tree is wilting and stripped of gifts, and there's a week of dead-time until the clean slate of the new year. However the combination of a blizzard, a power-cut and Sherlock might just make it a day to remember.

The Five Stages of Mourning, Plus One by SunnyRea (T, 10,557 w., 1 Ch. || MCD, Pining / Grieving Sherlock, URT, Heavy Angst, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Drug Use, Graphic Death, Depression, Unhappy Ending) – Sherlock did not want this, did not want another stalemate with John in the middle, a gun in Jim's hand. This cannot have happened without a sign. There has to be something he missed anything which said today is the day I kill for real.

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder by cypress_tree (E, 10,669 w., 1 Ch. || UST/RST, For an Experiment) – John helps Sherlock with an experiment: for an entire month, they are not allowed to touch each other and must remain at least one metre apart at all times.

I'm content as we are (but) by inqui (The_Circus) (E, 13,086 w., 1 Ch. || Jealous John, UST/RST, Pining, Victor Trevor, Minor Whump, First Kiss / Time, Misunderstandings) – In which John Watson sees something unusual, becomes jealous, and makes too much of a small thing as an old friend of Sherlock's shows up in the middle of a case.

Say For Me, Love by MirabileLectu (T, 13,147 w., 1 Ch. || UST, First Kiss, Drama, Pining John, Victor Trevor) – If you had asked John this morning what the result of his quiet afternoon at home would be, discovering a truth about Sherlock's past startling enough to shift the foundations of their friendship would not have been his first guess. So naturally, that was what was bound to happen.

Barricade by stitchy (M, 14,127 w., 1 Ch. || HLV Fix It, Friends to Lovers, Angst, Happy Ending, UST, Mary’s Not Nice, First Time, Pining Sherlock, Time Skip Filler, Drunkenness) – Sherlock has been struggling to keep his feelings at bay for everyone's sake. Part 1 of Barricade

Second Chance by SilentAuror (E, 15,816 w., 1 Ch. || Post-HLV, Post-Divorce, Friends to Lovers, UST, Romance) – Now that John's divorce has gone through and the dust is settling, Sherlock thinks that he would very much like to see if there is any possibility of moving their friendship in another direction. The only thing is, he has no idea how to go about doing that...

Anytime by SilentAuror (E, 17,995 w., 1 Ch. || UST, Porn With Feels, POV Sherlock, Romance, UST/URT, Happy Ending, Drunken Endeavours) – Sherlock blinks and attempts to focus. There is a little too much vodka in his veins at the moment and it’s having an unfortunate effect on his brain and retinas both. There are two Johns sitting across from him, and both of them are frowning at him. “You’re drunk,” the Johns tell him. Sherlock blinks some more. “Says the man with Mrs Hudson’s doily on his head.”

John Watson doesn't have a Boyfriend by naughtyspirit (E, 18,932 w., 7 Ch. || UST / URT, Fluff & Smut, Voyeurism, Masturbation) – John's date has gone very well. Sherlock requires tea. John wishes he hadn't resolved that their relationship was strictly hands off and isn't about to address it. Unless he has to. Smut, fluff and shower time for a naked John Watson.

For you, there's only me by shock_blanket (E, 19,557 w., 7 Ch. || Jealous Idiots, Virgin Sherlock, UST/RST, Pining, Miscommunication, First Kiss / Time, Insecure Sherlock, Masturbation) – Sherlock realizes he has fallen in love with John, but believes he is unlovable. Cue lots of pining and jealousy on Sherlock's part, followed by our favorite cuddly marksman making it all better. Because for Sherlock, there's only John.

Love Is by SilentAuror (E, 21,508 w., 1 Ch. || Angst, UST / URT, Post HLV, Romance) – At Mrs Hudson’s urging, Sherlock finally decides to tell John how he feels about him. Part 1 of Love Is

Brief Conversations with the Woman by May_Shepard (E, 21,906 w., 20 Ch. || Pining, Love Fairy Irene, Filler Fic, UST/URT, Drug Use, Clueless Sherlock, Relationship Advice, Angst w/ Happy Ending) – Sherlock has a puzzle to solve, and his name is John Watson.

Sonatina in G Minor by SilentAuror (E, 22,574 w., 1 Ch. || Case Fic, POV Sherlock, Angst, UST, Sherlock’s Violin, Post-S3, Romance) – John has come back to Baker Street, but Sherlock doesn't understand the strange tension between them, even after he begins teaching John to play the violin at John's request.

Knotted by naughtyspirit (E, 23,166 w., 4 Ch. || UST/URT, Cuddling, Sharing Body Heat, Confessions, Kissing, Masturbation, Frustration, BAMF!John) – John has to cancel a date because of Sherlock's case, which leads them to be tied up in a basement from which they have to escape. They get wet, get tied up close and John has to step up and save them. Because he's pretty. And hot. And just a little bit of a BAMF.

Hellfire by testosterone_tea (E, 28,596 w., 9 Ch. || Fantasy / Magic / Mages / Elementals AU || Mage Sherlock, Elemental John, Developing Relationship, Torture, Powerful / BAMF John, POV Alternating, Dark / Blood Magic, UST, First Kiss) – Sherlock is a Mage that gets involved with a case involving Dark Summoning rituals, leading him to John Watson, a man with Berserker blood. The only thing is, Berserkers have been extinct for centuries. And of course, nothing involving Mycroft and his interfering ways is ever simple. This time, even Sherlock may have bitten off more than he can chew.

That Partitioning of the Things of Youth by wearitcounts (E, 35,353 w., 7 Ch. || Humour and Angst, Post-TRF, Fake Relationship, UST / RST, Friends to Lovers, Jealous John) – Victor Trevor is in town, and nobody's happy.

The Case of the Vanishing Pants by SwissMiss (E, 44,025 w., 6 Ch. || Five and Ones, Post-TRF, Case Fic, UST, Homophobia, Friends to Lovers, Pining John, Showering Together, Couple for a Case, Sherlock’s Bum, Fantasies, Jealous Sherlock) – Five times John and Sherlock lost their pants in the course of a case.

Wars We Fought, Things We're Not by blueink3 (M, 55,204 w., 10 Ch. || Post S3 / Post TAB, Parentlock, Fluff & Angst, Kidnapping, Whump, Post-TAB, UST/URT, 3G, Mild Peril, Slow Burn, Couple for a Case, Protective Mycroft, Infant Death Pre-Story, Friends to Lovers) – Five months after John's world has fallen apart, Mycroft sends the consulting detective and his doctor on a case that neither is prepared for.

A Hundred Crimson Sols by elldotsee (E, 55,536 w., 16 Ch. || Astronauts AU || Mars Exploration / Space Travel, Slow Burn, Shy Sherlock, Scientist Sherlock / Biomed Engineer John, Alternating POV, Mutual Pining, UST, Angst with Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Injuries, Suicidal Ideation, Zero-G Sex) – Will Holmes is a chemical researcher recognized widely for his contributions to the new Mars exploration program. Thanks to his ground-breaking developments, the IMMC (International Mars Mission Corporation) is one step closer to Martian colonization. Will and his team of scientists are headed out on the first of three manned missions before the first group of settlers arrive. Three days before launch, one of the crew has to be replaced. Will panics because...new people. The replacement is of course one John Watson, biomedical engineer and space hottie who was pretty sure he had retired from actual space exploration and was now content to work in the nice, quiet research lab. Can the crew survive this TOTALLY ROUTINE trip? Will they be able to endure each other for the looooooong trip in close quarters? Gonna be a wild ride... prepare for blast off. Part 1 of SpaceBois go to Space

The Baker Street Nativity by SwissMiss (E, 99,662 w., 23 Ch. || Nativity! AU || Teacher Sherlock / TA John, Pining, Sherlock POV, UST, Angst, Christmas, Music/Song Fic, Anal / BJ’s, First Kiss / Time) – Fusion between Sherlock (BBC) and Nativity! (2009 movie starring Martin Freeman). Sherlock is a primary school teacher and John is assigned to be his classroom assistant. Together, they are charged with putting on the school's Nativity play. What could possibly go wrong? Part 1 of The Baker Street Nativity Verse

A Further Sea by i_ship_an_armada & ShinySherlock (E, 125,492 w., 23 Ch. || Historical Pirates AU || Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Doctor John / Pirate Captain Sherlock, Sailing, UST / RST, Masturbation, Action / Adventure, Mild Angst & Peril, Romance, Shaving, Molly/Janine, Bottomlock, Hand / Blow Jobs, Past Drug Use, Slow Burn, Mild Violence, Facial Shaving, Happy Ending) – Here be a tale of adventure for both body and soul, but beware if ye be not of stout heart, for this be piratelock, ya savvy? Luckless ship's surgeon John Watson takes a chance, and finds himself eye to eye with The Ghost, the scourge of the seven seas and a definite thorn in the side of the blaggard, James Moriarty. But when John finds there's more to this most cunning pirate than be meetin' the eye, he has to choose... is it a pirate's life for him?

The Adventure of the Silver Scars by tangledblue (NR [M], 142,458 w., 41 Ch. || S3 Fix-It, Post-HLV/ Post-TAB / Canon Compliant, Case Fic, No Baby, Angst, Humour, UST, Slow Burn, Angry John, Reconciliation, Not Nice Mary / Leaving Mary, Dependent Sherlock, Pining Sherlock, Caretaker John, Fist Fights, It’s An Experiment, Virgin Sherlock, Dancing, Drugging, John Whump, Pet Names, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Scars) – It’s been thirteen months since Mary shot Sherlock and John finds he’s still pissed off about it. Sherlock had thought everything was settled: John and Mary, domestic bliss. But when John turns up at Baker Street with suitcases, the world’s only consulting detective might not be prepared for the consequences. A new case. Some old scores to settle. Certain danger. Concertos, waltzes, and whisky.

Midnight Blue Serenity by BeautifulFiction (E, 151,907 w., 19 Ch. || Friends to Lovers, Gay Bar / For a Case, Drugs, Pining, Case Fic, UST) – When Sherlock infiltrates a club in order to track down a serial killer, his altered appearance is enough to make John question his assumption that Sherlock is beyond his reach. However, is he the only one who appreciates his flatmate's charms, or is Sherlock at risk of becoming the next victim?

#steph replies #johnlock fic recs #my fic recs #ust fics #urt fics #babyyoushouldseemeinacrown

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frostahesmegabite · 3 years

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Kira does whittling in her spare time - small statues, jewelry, that sort of thing. What she could use is something to burn patterns into the wood, but very small. Like the size of a small pen, to get the more intricate designs. Gold is always an issue, so she'd be wondering if he would accept part of the pay in goods she makes (she also cooks) or odd jobs.

[ Megahes doesn't tend to accept work in payment of goods, primarily cause from there it's a slippery slope on endentured servitude, especially when value of work provided coupled with greed can cause complications, but he'd definitely take payment in the way of food and/or even accepting a gift where his soon-to-be made tool for Kira is given back! :D ] Megahes stops at the workbench in his office and looks at the work order bin attached to the wall. He picks up the first order and he hums, looking around. "Odd, why's this in here? Any'a them mooks..." He pauses and shakes his head. "Ya know what. I'mma make tha shit outta this instead'a it bein some traditional wood engraving pen." He nods and proceeds to head into the Engineering Bay where he begins to prepare a bin with various needed wires, casings and assorted bits of shaped metal along with pins, screws and circuitry. A few of the goblins greet him with simple head nods or near whispered hello's as he makes his way about to acquire what he needs. A few hours later, he steps away from the workbench with a light sheen of sweat due to the welding and soldering that was done but what he had before him would put a smile on any jeweler or crafters face, or at least so he thought. He turns and moves to his desk to write up a note to explain his creation. "I know you probably expected something simple, but since this ended up on my workstation, I decided to be a little bit extra with your creation. I will be sending you an working kit with various Wood Etching Pen Heads and gauged Soldering Cobalt Heads along with some precious spun metals to put to use in etching wood or jewelry. Now, do be warned, Cobalt has an insanely hot melting point and I would recommend protective lenses when working with metal on metal, just in case of flashes or light or the stray or random spark so you don't risk eye damage. I'll also include these with the kit and they'll be adjustable size wise to make sure they fit!" He pauses and looks back at the kit before he continues writing. "Now, this assembly has your Etching Pen and then a detachable power assembly kit. When the Power Box isn't connected to it, your pen will run off of a liquid mana crystal battery where the circuitry can be set to two custom temperature settings, this way you can use your favorite or 'go-to' temperatures when or if you need to travel a lot. The assembly kit however can both recharge your etching pen as well as allow you to change the temperature selections you imprinted onto it before hand while also using a much broader spectrum of temperatures. If and when you do manage to drain the assembly kit of its inherently larger Liquid Mana Battery's charge, you can remove the battery pack and pour out the no longer charged liquid and replace it with fresh mana potion, strength of the potion is indicative of how much charge you'll be applying of course." He stops and rubs at his hand, giving it a moment before he goes to finish the letter. "I hope this not only covers what you need it for currently but also any potential uses in the future that you may not have ran into currently as well. Megahes Frostbite "The Metal Miser" " Once done, he tucks the letter along into an envelope along with some drawn up diagrams and instructions on how to work everything, just in case, as well as a hand drawn instruction panel of how to empty and refill the Liquid Mana Battery. He hums, taking the newly created tools and puts them into a Starwood Box lined with Stainless Steel and various mounts to hold the pen, kit and the spun filaments along with a small portion of Flux, just in case it was needed too. He heads outside and lays the box into the 'Outgoing Deliveries' ben along with the work order stamped to its top so it can be sent to the proper person. [ Thanks for the Prompt @kiraspringdale! Hope it's everything Kira needs and/or wanted! :D ]

#Megahes #RP Prompt #ic response #Goblin

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malewifegradyruewen · 3 years

Text

Ceux Qui Ne Meurent Jamais, Chapter Three

three chapters in three days i'm insane-

previous | next | masterpost

trigger warnings: overall creepy vibe, i was almost too scared to finish, that's why it stops so abruptly, i don't recommend reading late at night or in the dark, ask to tag

word count: 1715

tagging: @fire-sapphics @zoyyanazyalensky @dirty-racoon @della-vacker-supremacy @raiinyrxse @lucat13 @tiergan-andrin-alenefar @genyyasafin @cadence-talle @thewhiteblades @gay-otlc @brilliantblindinglights @enbies-and-felonies @love-pyramus @silver-war @pencilwritesshiz47 @littlemisscupcake lmk if you want to be added/removed!!

SLAM!

Nathalie awoke to the sound of what she assumed was a door slamming shut. The wind howled outside her window, making the panes rattle. She looked at the clock, but the room was too dark for her to see. She lit the candle that had been sitting on her bedside table and padded across the floor to look. Two-fifty-four.

Given the strong winds outside, a draft blowing a door shut was nothing too out of the ordinary, so Nathalie decided to return to bed. She started crossing back to her four-poster when she heard another SLAM! It sounded closer, as though the first one had been one of the vacant bedrooms at the far end of the hallway, and this one was only a few doors down. While it did seem odd, she didn’t think much of it. An old, empty manor could only withstand so much on a night as windy as this one.

SLAM! A third door slamming shut, this one stopping Nathalie in her tracks. It sounded as though this door was across the hall, the door to the only accessible room that was currently vacant. She turned around slowly and crept towards her door, so she could check the hallway and put her mind at ease before returning to bed. She reached out to grab the doorknob before she realised she was shaking. Maybe checking the hall wasn’t the best idea. But her curiosity got the best of her, and she kneeled down on the floor and laid down on her stomach, peering under the door. She couldn’t see anything, and after a few minutes she was ready to go back to bed, until she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.

She could just make out a heavy pair of boots, walking swiftly yet somehow silently across the floor. She held her breath as the boots stopped right in front of her door. Her heart was pounding, louder than it ever had before. The boots moved closer to her door, taking one step, then another, before stopping once more. They turned and ran down the hallway, towards the vacant bedrooms.

Nathalie wasn’t sure how long she stayed there, on the floor next to her door, the only light the candle on her nightstand slowly dimming as the wax melted. Not another door slammed, though the wind blew ever stronger. Who was that, with the black boots, and why were they here? How had they gotten here? Her brain rattled with questions, like the panes clattering in the window frames. But there was nothing she could do about it tonight. She’d ask Lady Lucie in the morning.

Slowly, she got up off the floor and climbed back into bed, snuffing out the candle as she did so. Her heart was still racing and her head was still pounding, but as darkness enveloped the room once more, she couldn’t fight the exhaustion, and she slipped into an uneasy slumber.

-:-

Nathalie was awoken by the sun streaming through her windows, so bright it felt blinding. The house was quiet, the ticking of the clock the only sound. Nine-twenty-seven. Lady Lucie had said breakfast was typically at nine, but she’d make it fresh for Nathalie. She could afford a few more moments in bed before getting ready for the day.

Thoughts of breakfast and sunlight and the other ladies in the house distracted her for a moment, but it wasn’t long before her questions about last night’s events took front and center in her brain. Even now, she shuddered at the memory of the boots standing outside her door, silent on such a creaky floor.

She couldn’t bear to sit and wallow in memory any longer, so she instead climbed out of bed and changed out of her nightdress to an outfit nearly identical to that of last night, only the skirt was green and the blouse was white. She quickly untied the ribbon wrapped around the end of her braid and tied her hair into a bun, the same way she had everyday since she was a child. Slipping her grey shoes back on, she headed downstairs to the dining room they’d eaten in the night before.

There was no evidence anyone had used the dining room thus far that morning, but the door to the kitchen was propped open. Nathalie cautiously walked towards the kitchen, spotting Lady Lucie elbows deep in the sink. The clatter of dishes being plunged into the soapy water was loud, but it still seemed strange to Nathalie that her footsteps hadn’t been loud enough to alert Lady Lucie to her presence.

“Good morning,” she said, raising her voice so she could be heard above the dishes.

Lady Lucie whipped around, as though she hadn’t been expecting Nathalie. “Lady Nathalie!” she cried. “Good morning! Don’t mind me, just tidying up after breakfast! I left a bowl next to the stove for you, and there’s a plate of fruit and a bowl of sugar on the counter.”

She pointed as she spoke, guiding Nathalie to a pot of porridge on the stove. She groaned. After eating it nearly every day of her childhood, she despised porridge. The bland, tasteless mush was one of the worst things about Hazelford Children’s Manor. However, she couldn’t deny that her stomach was rumbling, so she took a small scoop and added several heaping spoonfuls of sugar before taking her bowl and the whole plate of fruit to the dining room. There wasn’t much on the plate, as the native berries were mostly out of season, but there were apple slices, which in Nathalie’s opinion, were the best of all the fruits. She reluctantly put a bit of porridge on the apple slice and ate it, delightfully surprised at her creation. No longer despising the food in front of her, she ate it as quickly as she could.

Partway through her bowl of porridge, Lady Lucie emerged from the kitchen and joined Nathalie. “I trust you sleep well?”

For a moment, Nathalie debated lying, saying that her sleep had been uninterrupted. Would Lady Lucie know if she lied? But she decided to ask about the heavy yet silent black boots last night.

“There were some doors that slammed last night. I don’t know if you heard them. They woke me up, and I saw something...strange.”

“Oh? Strange how?” Lady Lucie seemed surprised, though Nathalie couldn’t fathom how. The doors had been quite loud, and she wasn’t sure how anyone could sleep through them.

“There was...a person, in the hallway upstairs, I think. I saw, under my door, a pair of black boots, but they were silent.” She decided to leave out the part where they had walked towards her door, and had seemingly been called away.

Lady Lucie paled. “Le Cavalier de l'ombre.”

“The what?”

“Cavalier de l'ombre. A legend,” she said, jumping up. “Come, to the library, I’ll show you what I mean.”

Nathalie had no time to argue, because Lady Lucie had grabbed her wrist and was pulling her away from the table. She had no choice but to run to keep up as they wound through hallways, past closed off sitting rooms and boarded up doors, too many to count. Finally, they reached a pair of the largest doors Nathalie had ever seen, even larger than the front doors. Lady Lucie let go of her wrist to push the door open, not straining despite their size.

Had she not been terrified of what seemed to be imminent doom, Nathalie would have stopped and marveled at the library. The ceiling was three stories tall, and at least half of Hazelford Children’s Manor alone could fit in here. Bookshelves spanned from floor to ceiling, with two balconies wrapping around the entire room so books higher up could be accessed. There were at least a dozen ladders hung onto rods above the bookcases with small wheels at the bottom so one could reach any book they pleased. The highest balconies had small baskets on pulleys to lower books down while climbing down the narrow spiral staircases hidden in the corners. Grand chandeliers illuminated the room, along with the light streaming in the great stained glass windows directly opposite the doors, the only bit of wall space that wasn’t covered in books. Sofas, tables, armchairs, and desks were scattered about so that everyone had a spot to read and study, although there was a fair number of floor pillows as well.

But Nathalie had no time to marvel at these wonders as she was dragged up a spiral staircase and around a balcony until Lady Lucie stopped so abruptly, she almost fell over.

“Here it is,” Lady Lucie said breathlessly, pulling a book off a shelf at eye-level and flipping through it frantically. “Legends of the Ladies, by Lady Auriane. It’s old, maybe 12 cycles, but it’s one of the best when it comes to our lore. Here,” she said, settling on a page and pointing to the header. “Le Cavalier de l'ombre.”

She offered it to Nathalie, and she took it and started reading. “Le Cavalier de l’ombre is a figure who has no face, makes no sound, and leaves no memory of their visit. They travel in shadow, typically appearing at night to unsuspecting souls. Only appearing to the ladies of the order thus far, they seem to steal immortality, weakening the lady until she has no life left within her, so she meets her demise shortly thereafter. The ladies who fall victim pass with no knowledge as to how or why. No lady has been able to speak of how their immortality is stolen, but all can recall a sense of dread and a drop in temperature before their memory is blank. There seems to be no pattern as to who falls victim to this being, but they will choose one lady and pursue them until they have achieved their goals. Thus far there has been no way found to harm this creature.”

Nathalie finished reading and looked at Lady Lucie, who was paler than any person Nathalie had ever seen. “What does this mean?”

“It means,” Lady Lucie choked, “you’re the next victim of le cavalier de l’ombre, and we don’t know how to stop it.”

#jolie's shitty writing #cqnmj #ceux qui ne meurent jamais

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nikasholistic · 3 years

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How do we change our subconscious belief systems? Ik it takes time, patience and self-awareness to reprogram ourselves, to tear out the destructive and self-sabotaging habits/thought patterns/(in)actions, to replace them with the right things that'll allow us to live the life we deserve

How do we actually do that?

There's such an info overload on the net. Who do I trust? What actually works? I really want to change, but I keep relapsing, then I give up, then as I realise I've spiralled, I get desperate, then I re-try... Then the cycle repeats

I have deep-rooted issues - no doubt that's why anything I try doesn't stick (plus mostly, what can I do when a part of me itself doesn't care about 'changing'? My desire to change < Convincing power of that part). It's unbearable, sometimes. Other times, when I wake up, I conveniently completely forget I was doing a particular method (eg I find myself working on affirmations for up to a week, then the next day somehow I don't even remember doing this (or I magically lose the paper I'd written them on), and it takes a while before I recall what I was working on). Extremely frustrating. Especially since it took me a while to identify these sly tricks of the SC mind (and it was a real aha moment when I looked back and saw this pattern snaking back into my past)

Ah these SC beliefs. It's so insane how powerful they can be. Ik some part of me is scared sick of me changing and getting rid of the old (90%+ self-destructive) me. Idk how to battle myself when it seems so natural for me to fall into these quicksand traps. Idk if you've experienced this. It's been some months now and it's not getting easier

Ever since I've 'woken up', I realise how rotten my current reality is, and the consequences of my poor thinking/feeling in the past. But I accept that. It's just: what if everything keeps going like this, and eventually leads to the same future? An unfulfilled, lackadaisical existence. I'm terrified of that. As if I'm in the passenger seat of a crashing car. The worst is when opportunities do knock (coz of some successful deliberate LOA practices), and I find myself unable to step up. Deep fear, hidden guilt, major lack of trust in myself have led to this. Phases of darkness during my developing years haven't helped either. As time passes, and the above cycle repeats, I become aware of more (long-buried) twisted beliefs and distorted concepts of my 'worth' and 'future'. It's frightening what monsters have been hiding under the bed. I feel helpless and alone

If I really force myself to challenge some beliefs, say, I end up 'researching' instead, and we all know endlessly consuming content (articles, 'self-help' books, YT 'coaches') is nice and all, but it ain't worth nothing without application

And application is where I fail

The only thing that's changed is I've become self-aware (say, half of the time) in realising when I'm falling prey to the 'destructive' beliefs. Again, it's not much use when I still give in (except now with added guilt at the back of my mind). But no, I do admit it's an achievement! I'm more aware of my thoughts too (as opposed to never realising what damage I was doing to myself by self-inflicting pain via thoughts for so many years)

Can I change? How would you go about turning your life around, from within, if you were in my place?

You inspire me so much. I hope you can give me some advice. I need help like you would help a child - Leading by the hand

What do I do, henceforth, to start rebuilding the foundations of my mind? (SC belief system)

Love you ❤️

And apologies for the long ask but I had to get it out of my chest instead of letting the helplessness grow unchecked. Any help would be appreciated eternally

Thank you for opening up, sometimes we just have to allow the words to flow✨

First of all, I would highly recommend Dr. Joe Dispenza’s book Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself. Because this is what you have to do in order to establish a new belief system, you have to break the habit of being yourself and thus let go of the past self. Dispenza shows you how to do this.

What I’ve personally learned from his books, and from other materials, is that establishing a new belief system is never an immediate thing, and you have to be very patient. You also have to be prepared for setbacks and be willing to rise above them.

I think you’re in some kind of loop with your current belief system. We have between 60-70 000 thoughts a day. 95% of these thoughts are unconscious thoughts. 90% of the thoughts you have today are the same thoughts you had yesterday. You’re running on autopilot, and the key is to establish a new program.

You change your belief system through repetition and turning disempowering beliefs into empowering beliefs. Shadow work is essential here because first, you have to understand the root of particular thoughts, and then change this root and create more empowering beliefs. You say you’re afraid of certain beliefs you uphold, and you don’t have to. You can heal them and let them go.

Since the subconscious mind is like a computer, you have to establish a new program, and you do this by repetition. Affirmations are essential here. I’ve got a post about affirmations, you can read it here, I would highly recommend combining some of the techniques I presented there. I really think that affirmations are the best and the most effective way to reprogram your mind; you're already programming your mind with certain affirmations, but these affirmations are full of fear and uncertainty. Time for the new, conscious ones.

However, the most important part of changing your belief system is commitment. Why? Because the moment you decide to change, your ego will do everything to prevent you from attaining change. Your ego’s job is to protect you, and it does so by keeping you in a familiar situation, even if this situation doesn't serve you. Your ego is afraid of the unknown, however, the only way to establish a new belief system and thus a new reality is to willingly step into the unknown. You say you’re afraid of letting go of your old self, but it’s just your ego trying to be in control. You can let go of your past self. Your past self has nothing to offer you anymore.

You have to become very conscious of your habits. Maybe change your routine a little bit? Stop doing certain things on autopilot, and find new ways of doing them. It’s connected with something called neuroplasticity, Dr. Joe Dispenza explains it very well in the book I’ve mentioned.

It usually takes about 30-90 days of consistent work to establish a new belief system. That’s why you have to stay committed. You have to be prepared for a little battle with your past self and past belief system. You have to be prepared for the fact that you might want to come back to your old thinking patterns, and the moment you do this, it’s time to self-regulate. It’s time to switch your thinking and your emotions. Whenever you do this, you become a conscious designer of your reality and you stop allowing life to happen to you.

Hope that this was helpful. I know that you can do this, it takes time, but eventually, you’ll master your thoughts.

Love you too 💗

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boukenboy · 3 years

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#18: ユーディーのアトリエ / Atelier Judie

I've always been curious about the Atelier series - created by developer Gust, there are over 20+ games as of 2021, and judging from what I've read online, it's very popular both here and in Japan. Later entries in the series are localized nowadays, but the first few games have yet to see any kind of English release, so I decided, pretty much at random, to start with Atelier Judie. I considered starting from the beginning with Atelier Marie, but I screwed up my PS1 emulator settings somehow, and the thought of redoing everything made my spirit hurt.

True to its title, you play as a young alchemist named Judie, who lives in the outskirts of Life village. She makes a living doing odd jobs for the townspeople and the occasional adventurer. One day, a stranger asks Judie to create a magical McGuffin that can temporarily stop time. This task turns out to be a tad beyond her alchemical skills, and our unfortunate protagonist is sent 200 years into the past.

She takes it well-enough, despite losing literally everything and everyone she cared about - and takes up residence in the town Verun, where she once again begins to work as a freelance alchemist in order to pay her benefactor, the loan shark Vitoss, and to find a way back to get back home. Along the way, you'll explore the land of Gramnad, meet all sorts of charming characters, and craft. Lots and lots of craft. Ing.

In order to actually make anything, you'll need to go foraging for ingredients - each town has its own wild area to explore, and what you'll find is naturally different in each one. Judie is a bit weak at the beginning, however, so you'll be relying on hirable adventurers to do the majority of the combat. Their help doesn't come free, but I rarely had any issues with keeping a party for the majority of the game.

The combat itself is standard JRPG fare, albeit with a few twists. Instead of the usual MP and HP stats, there's an additional LP (Life Point) stat that is used for combat techniques, not magic. Interestingly, whenever any of these stats hit 0, that character will be unable to battle. This also applies to monsters. Certain enemies, usually the undead, will use attacks that drain LP and / or MP, so they present a unique threat to your more tankier party members, as they usually have dangerously low MP values.

Furthermore, only alchemists are able to use items in battle. This can make battles a bit tense, as you have to solely rely on Judie for healing. There is another alchemist you can recruit, but in my experience, this made for a unbalanced party, unless you craft an absolutely insane amount of bombs in order to make up for the lack of melee prowess. Each character has their own special skills and abilities, with very little overlap - from what I’ve seen, only Christa and Vitoss share a technique. This makes each character feel special, even if most only get, at most, 3 or 4 at higher levels. I would have liked a few more, but this is an open-world game from 2002. Yeah.

The real meat of the game, of course, is in the crafting. You'll find recipes for items through books bought from stores, and occasionally through events. Once you find the required ingredients, you'll select your desired item from a menu, and then hope for the best. Each item has its own difficulty rating, and your rate of success will rise as your alchemy level increases through repeated crafting. Be aware that crafting takes LP and in-game time, so if you're at risk of missing deadlines, you'd do well to finish any previous commitments before going on a spree.

Depending on the quality of the ingredients used, you can increase, for example, the amount of HP a healing item restores, or even change what the item does entirely. There's an item you'll be making early on that, in theory, decreases the amount of enemy encounters on the world map once its equipped. However, if you tweak the recipe a bit, you can make a different version that actually increases it, or even influence what kind of monsters you encounter. Discovering these alternate effects is a lot of fun, and I spent an enormous amount of time unconcerned with the plot just playing around and experimenting.

You also have to be mindful of the self-life of ingredients. As time passes, many items will decrease in quality, though this is mainly an issue for organic products. I was quite surprised the first time I went on a real dungeon dive - I had prepared a few bowls of cream soup, an HP healing item, just in case I needed them. Unfortunately, they spoiled halfway through the trip, so I was shook when I accidentally poisoned my entire party instead of healing them! Thankfully, should your entire party get knocked out, you're sent back home with the only penalty being a loss of time.

Speaking of home, one of my favorite aspects of Atelier Judie is the ability to move your base of operations to one of several locations - each one has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, in one town, you'll have easy access to fruits and vegetables, eventually being able to plant them yourself. In another, you'll have access to a freezer, allowing you to preserve delicate ingredients. My favorite town and current base is in Prostark. Here, you're only a few steps away from a smelting furnace and a mine - many of the mid-game items require ingots, so it's a great fit. The downside to Prostark is that I'm quite a bit away from nature. When I need vegetables or herbs, I have to run the risk of them rotting before I even get home. This risk is further exacerbated due to Atelier Judie’s random event system. These can be harmful or beneficial, but most of the time, they'll either improve or decrease ingredient quality. It's a surprising element of realism that I found fresh. Pun intended.

In fact, there is a lot of randomness present in Judie. Plot-advancing events seem to happen seemingly at random: I'd spend days feeling like I wasn't getting anywhere, only to be suddenly blindsided with access to new areas or characters to meet. I was often left feeling lost, as I could not discover any kind of pattern as to what unlocks what, but in general, it's best to change up your party members and move bases every now and then. The game also features random vignettes that allow you to get a better sense of who your party members are as people. These are usually comedic, and are always accompanied with beautiful artwork.

I love the warmth present in Atelier Judie. As a whole, it's simply a delight to play. The encounter rate can grate a little, and tracking down ingredients can get a bit tedious - especially so with items with low spawn rates - but overall, it feels like a lot like a fairytale. The art-style is bright and charming, even the monsters are adorable (my favorite being the Ghost family) and the land of Gramnad feels alive and bursting with character. There's an astonishing attention to detail. I enjoyed how every town's bartender, merchant, etc, had their own unique voice actor and personality. Subjectively speaking, the game just feels like it was made with love. And that's incredible.

Highly recommended!

#gaymer #atelier #atelier series #atelier judie #jrpg #gust #psp #ps2 #game review #retro gaming #retro game

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theyilinglaozus · 3 years

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Ahh WWX being happy just gives me lots of feels! Speaking of feels, I personally haven't read the novel except for bits and pieces but I recently learned that WWX's death there was different to what was presented in the series and I don't know which one breaks me more! Like, is it him throwing himself off the cliff in front of LWJ or is it him being ripped apart by the resentful energy he HAD to utilize because he couldn't use a different cultivation method anymore?? -✨

Overall, the "control" theme that plays a huge part in demonic cultivation is what really gets me. This is personal now, but to me there are few things scarier than losing control. Plus, I recently found a very dark, angsty fic about LWJ bringing WWX back to the Burial Mounds where WWX is incredibly far gone already and basically insane, and just the thought of it really messed with me. What do you think of this? Which version of his death is more interesting for you, which one sadder? -✨

Wei Wuxian’s happiness makes me happy 😊 The boy has been through enough, he deserves to live in happy AU’s where his biggest concern is his feelings over Lan Wangji.

I started the office!AU you recommended CC, and oh my gosh. It’s so good! I’m absolutely loving it so far. Thanks again for recommending it, I can’t wait to see how it’ll end 💖 You got me invested in another fic, ha!

Oof, that is a question. I actually had to have a think about my response for a little bit, because although I have my preferences over which I prefer, I haven’t actually thought too much into why that is.

You’re absolutely right on the theme of control. In both versions of MDZS control is present - and it’s all about the unpredictability of a cultivation method that is so feared and misunderstood / unknown to the larger majority of the cultivation world. Wei Wuxian is constantly saying he can control it, but can he really? Even he doesn’t really understand the extent of what he’s utilising.

I personally prefer the drama version of Wei Wuxian’s death. It’s the first one I was made aware of and until I learnt differently, I just assumed the novel followed the same pattern. My first instinct when I read what happened to him in the novel was to recoil and go ‘don’t like that’ to him being torn apart. I’m still not fond on it, but I get it in terms of the story.

I like the drama version more though because, even though Wei Wuxian’s death is really a suicide in it, his control over his fate was never taken from him. He honestly believed at that point in the story that he had nothing left to live for - his sister had just died for him, he’d lost the Wens, lost A Yuan. The cultivation world hated him to the point they were ready to murder him ... as far as Wei Wuxian was concerned, he wasn’t leaving Nightless City alive anyway. It was just a matter of how he was going to die.

Yet although he’d lost everything, although he believed everyone hated him, although he knew he was going to likely die - he took that decision of how he was going to die into his own hands. His last act is his own: one which he has complete control over. He is exhausted and heartbroken, and no longer sees a place for himself in the world anymore. He thinks he brought more harm to those he loved than ever bringing any good, so Wei Wuxian decides no more.

He decides to let go.

I even believe Lan Wangji understands that it is Wei Wuxian’s choice to die at this point. Although Wei Wuxian shakes free of the grasp he has on him and despite his own injury, Lan Wangji could have reached to grab him again. He doesn’t attempt a second time though, and it’s because - even though the act truly shatters his own heart - Lan Wangji loves Wei Wuxian so much that he even respects the choice he makes.

I also just really love how the drama has this consistency of mirroring throughout it. Even Wei Wuxian’s death mirrors an episode that happened not long before, where they have the exchange in the rain and Wei Wuxian says things like ‘if there’s a war between me and them, then I’d rather battle to the death with you’ and ‘if I die, at least I will die by your hand. That would be fair.’ These are his choices and his decisions - he’s saying to Lan Wangji that he would welcome death by his hand which is ... oof. That’s a big thing to lay on someone!

That’s what I see from the scene, anyway. The book death is effective in it’s own right, and it’s still sad. But I just prefer the drama one because there’s so much tangled up within it and to me? It hurts more 😢 Especially when I think of this quote from The Song of Achilles which reminds me of Wei Wuxian’s choice here (and how it affects those who continued to live that did still care for him).

“It is right to seek peace for the dead. You and I both know there is no peace for those who live after.”

#replies #anonymous #classified cultivator ✨#mdzsnetcc #i'm interested in what fic you found CC!#most of the fics I find around this area are either #a) fix-it fic of saving wei wuxian before the 'bad things' happen or #b) the reaction to wei wuxian's death

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venusmages · 3 years

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Cyberpunk 2077 non-spoiler review

Anyways here’s my writeup about my least favorite parts of 2077 for people who are interested in seeing if it’s for them. Both going to talk about content as well as gameplay. This is for PC version, too, because I know last gen consoles are suffering terribly rn and I wouldn’t recommend the game if you’re not going to be playing on PC. At least not until it’s on sale or the issues have been resolved. It really, really shouldn’t have been released on last gen consoles at all in my opinion - or at least should’ve been released on consoles LATER.

If you like Saints Row, GTA, Mass Effect, Shadowrun, or the Cyberpunk genre in general - I definitely think this is something you might want to take a peek at! I wasn’t anticipating the game until about a month or two before release - so maybe that’s why I’m having a blast - but It’s one of my favorite stories from the past decade as far as sci-fi goes. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it, and It’s really impressed me. I can’t even go into detail about all the things I LOVE because I really want folks to experience it themselves. Just know there’s a very intricately detailed world, all the characters are memorable and insanely well realized and complex, and the story is great fun. Also made me cry like 5 times. It’s become one of my FAVORITE games very quickly.

I’d also recommend Neon Arcade if you want someone who’s been covering the game for quite a while, including the technical and game industry aspect. He does well to go into some detail and even though he’s a fan, I’ve found him to be largely unbiased. I’m not going to go into industry politics here because I feel that’s up for everyone to decide on their own terms.

No spoilers, things to keep in mind, content warnings, etc. below!

CONTENT WARNINGS and issues with plot/story

this setting is dark. very dark. if you struggle stomaching things like dystopian landscapes, body horror, physical, mental and sexual abuse, corporate and gang violence, abuse of children, harsh language, and concepts that mess with the perception of reality - this game might not be for you. It’s a very mature setting, and I don’t mean that in the Adult Swim kind of way. I mean it in the ‘oh shit, it went there’ way. In my opinion I haven’t run across anything in it that was handled distastefully when it dipped into the depressing, but dark and gritty isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and I wanted to give a disclaimer.

The game’s universe in advertising and working for the lower class also exploits sex/sex work quite a bit. This is part of the lore itself because in this universe everyone’s become desensitized to sex and violence to the point that marketing embraces it and makes it ridiculous. I feel it’s very obvious that it doesn’t condone this message and is instead a commentary on consumerism - but people still might be uncomfortable seeing a lot of suggestive stuff all over the place regardless.

Women in game are naked more often than men - even though there is nudity for both. This is likely a mix of appealing to the Gamer Boy demographic (even though the story does NOT actually), or the fact that media is way more cool with seeing naked women than seeing full frontal nudity on men. They probably had to tone some of it down to avoid going above an M rating.

The story is amazing, but sometimes it dumps a lot onto you at once. It’s one of those sci-fi stories that you have to really be following the names, faces, and concepts continually to get it all down. There’s a lot of betrayal, background players, etc. I think by the mid-way point I’d mostly had it, but It’s pretty dense. However it’s still amazing. You might just need two playthroughs before every tiny detail clicks - because there’s a LOT of details.

Honestly I think it would help to read up on the lore first so you’re not going ‘what’ constantly. But people have seemed to manage fine without that also! Neon Arcade has a really nice series of videos (like 2 or 3) that get you up to speed with the universe. It also helps you decide if the tone is right for you.

I think the main story should’ve been longer, also. I don’t mind a 20 hr story, especially in a massive RPG, but It feels like they really struggled to cram as much into that time frame as possible. It skirts the edge of being nice and concise, snappy, and tight - and needing just a few more moments to take a breath and wait a second. This is helped if you do a lot of side quests.

The straight male romance option, River, is INCREDIBLY well written but he doesn’t tie into the main plot in any way whatsoever. It’s very strange and feels like they either ran out of time with him, or slapped together a romance with him at the last second. All the other romances at least know what’s going on with V’s story - meanwhile River has no idea, and you can never tell him. He’s an amazing guy though and I highly recommend his questline. He appears in ACT 2.

In general I’d say not to bother with the romances. There are only 4 total, and while the romancible characters on their own are really well written, the romances themselves are just kinda meh. One romance you don’t even meet until act 3. I don’t think they should’ve been included in the game at all, because they definitely don’t feel as fleshed out as everything else.

CDPR also sometimes forget that women players or gay men exist. Panam and Judy have a lot more content than River and Kerry for example. I don’t think this is intentional, they just have a large fanbase of dudebros. It only shows in the romance content and the nudity thing though.

Johnny, Takemura, and Claire should’ve been romances and I will fight to the death on that.

There are gay and trans characters in the game and their stories don’t revolve around their sexualities. It’s very Fallout: New Vegas in it’s approach to characters: IE. you’re going to love them. All of them.

V’s gender isn’t locked to their body type or their genitals- but to to their voice. I don’t think it’s the best solution they could’ve used but given how the game is heavily voice acted I assume that was what they had to work with.

Some of the romances are locked to both cis voices AND body types (not genitals if I recall but body shapes). That’s disappointing but I assume it was because of scripted scene issues and/or ignorance on the dev’s part considering the LGBT NPCS are so AMAZINGLY done. There’s no homophobic or transphobic language in the game - though there are gendered curse words and insults if that bothers you.

Some characters MAY suffer from ‘bilingual people don’t talk like that’ syndrome. But it can be hard to say for sure given that translators exist in this universe and the way they operate aren’t fully described. It’s only momentarily distracting, not enough to take away from how charming the NPCs are.

The endings are really good don’t get me wrong but I want fix it fic :(. All of the endings out of like 6 (?) in the game are bittersweet.

Both gender V’s are very good but female V’s voice acting is out of this world. If you don’t know what voice to go with/are neutral I’d highly recommend female V. Male V is charming and good but he feels much more monotone compared to female V.

V has their own personality. To some this won’t be a detractor - but a lot of people thought they’d be making absolutely everything from the ground up. V is more of a commander shepard or geralt than a skyrim or d&d pc, if that makes sense. You can customize and influence them to a HUGE degree, some aspects of V will always be the same.

Streetkid is the most boring background - at least for it’s introduction/prologue.

GAMEPLAY/TECHNICAL

If you can run your game on ultra, don’t. It actually looks best with a mix of high and medium settings. Unless you have a beast that has ray-tracing - then by all means use ray tracing and see how absolutely insanely good it looks.

There are color blind modes for the UI, but not for some of the AI/Netrunning segments in cutscenes. Idk how much this will effect folks with colorblindness but those segments are thankfully short.

There was an issue with braindances being an epilepsy trigger because for some reason they decided to mirror the flashing pattern after real epilepsy tests - probably because it ‘looks cool’. I don’t have epilepsy but it even hurt my eyes and gave me a headache. Massive oversight and really goddamn weird. Thankfully this was fixed.

There is no driving AI. Like at all. If you leave your car in the street the traffic is just going to pile up behind it. It’s one of the very few immersion breaking things I’ve encountered.

Sometimes when an NPC is driving with you in the car, they’ll drive on the curb and/or run into people. It’s kind of funny but can occasionally result in something weird. Feels very GTA - but nothing excruciating.

The camera angle feels a little too low in first person mode when driving on cars. You get used to it though.

The police in this game feel slapped on and I hope they improve it. Right now if you commit a crime, you can never tell what will actually trigger it. And if you just run away a few blocks the police forget about it.

Bikes are just way more fun to ride than the cars are.

You CANNOT respec your character after you make them. Ever. it sucks. Go in with an idea ahead of time what you wanna do - it’s better than being a jack of all trades.

as of now you also CANNOT change their appearance after you exit the character creator. This, also, sucks. Make sure you REALLY like your V or you’re gonna be replaying the openings over and over like I did.

Photomode on PC is the N key. Had to look it up. The mode itself is great though

Shooting and Mele fighting feel pretty standard. I don’t have a lot of shooter experience besides Bethesda games so anything feels better than that to me. So far I’ve enjoyed stealth and mele the best, but that’s just my own taste! The combat and driving aren’t groundbreaking by any means, but they’re still very fun. I look forward to running at people with swords or mantis blades, and zipping around the city on a motorcycle to see the sights. The story, lore, and interesting quests and characters are the real draw here.

I haven’t encountered any game breaking bugs in 80-ish hours of play time. One or two T-poses, a few overlays not loading or floating objects - but nothing terrible. Again, my experience is with Bethesda games. This is all usually fixed by either opening your inventory and closing it again, or exiting out and reloading your save.

The C button is mapped for crouching AND skipping dialogue by default. That’s terrible. Change it in the settings to be HOLDING C skips dialogue and you’ll be gucci.

There’s apparently a crafting system. I have never been inclined to touch it. But I also play on easy like a pleb so IDK how it all scales otherwise.

The mirror reflections can be a little bit weird, at least on my end. They always end up a teeny bit grainy despite my computer being able to run everything on Ultra Max. You can still get good screens out of it though!

So many people text me to sell me cars and I want them to stop. Please. also the texting menu is abysmal. The rest is ok tho

It’s pretty clear when you’re going to go into a ‘cutscene’. all cutscenes are rendered in-engine BUT you often will be talking to other characters at a specific angle or setting. The game locks you into this usually by having you sit down. It works for me - after all we do a lot of sitting- but it IS very obvious that it’s a way for the game to get you in the frame it wants to display.

That’s all I can think of rn! If you’re interested but wanted to get a slightly better idea of whats going on, I hope this helps. I’m really enjoying it and despite my issues it’s exceeding my expectations. I’m going to be thinking about and replaying this game for quite a while.

#cyberpunk 2077 #cyberpunk 2077 review #2077 review #cp2077 #rosetxt #txt

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moneypedia · 3 years

Link

I said I would show you my “how” and here it is.

This is my guide to conquer depression with practical advice you can use right now.

Just make sure you commit to making this change, because none of this will help without your own time and effort.

And remember, if someone as broken as I was can comeback from this, there’s no doubt you can too.

Use the links here to navigate between each section and go straight to what you want to see:

Check Your Source

Master the Reframe

Thoughts on a Page

The Fundamentals

The Power of Words

Embrace What Others Hate

Keep Your Thoughts on a Leash

(Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you decide to follow the links and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission from the item(s) at no extra cost to you.)

Check Your Source

You know what’s more depressing than actually being depressed?

Doing a Google search on how to beat depression.

(I know that’s ironic if you got here through Google but hear me out anyway.)

Back when I was dealing with this, and even now when I compare my tips with others, I realized that most people who gave advice were victims who told how to live with the problem. They didn’t have solutions that came from actually solving it.

It was like an unemployed person telling you how to survive without a paycheck instead of showing you how to get a job.

The first page of Google showed me posts telling me to be patient so my situation might change. They told me that I should go watch a heartwarming movie. Or maybe drink tea every morning to bring me peace.

Are you serious?

You’re telling someone who feels lower than the dirt underneath your fingernails that tea is somehow gonna help?

It was pathetic. You could see the struggle laced all throughout their words.

Even when I was in that place, I knew better than to listen to those still stuck where I was trying to leave.

So remember that if the person you’re listening to still sounds broken, they haven’t conquered anything yet.

But keeping that in mind, you should also avoid another group. That group is the tough love crew—with an emphasis on the tough part.

They’ve either…

A) Never faced what you’re dealing with. So they’ll treat you like less of a person because they can’t show understanding.

Or…

B) They have been through this, but they overcompensate for their former weakness by giving bogus “man up” advice.

It’s people like that who keep you from starting meaningful discussions about what’s going on.

The good news is, you have one person here who’s dealt with your problem and found real solutions—not just gimmicks to treat symptoms. So follow this guide and only take additional advice from people who have done what you want to do. Otherwise, you’ll set yourself up for failure.

Master the Reframe

You can often trace depression back to the thoughts you decide to dwell on. If you focus on your failures for example, you’ll view life through a darker lens than someone who focuses on the good.

It’s always possible to find good in any situation, whether controllable or uncontrollable. And reframing is how you do that.

So what is reframing? It’s simply changing your view of a situation to the most positive outlook.

We can look at the classic glass-half-full example to see reframing in action. The person who reframes will see the glass as being half full, whereas a person who doesn’t will see the glass as half empty.

All you’re doing is taking your circumstances and looking at them from a better angle.

If you’re dealing with a controllable problem, it’s best to use your reframe as a starting point for action. And if you have an uncontrollable problem, you look for learning points, opportunities, and the overall big picture.

So here’s a different example: Let’s say you lose your job.

You can do like most people and worry about your money. You can hold a grudge against your boss. Or you might complain that it wasn’t fair and refuse to search for work.

But all of those are terrible perspectives. Reframe them instead:

You can’t control the fact that they let you go, but you can ask the company why it happened.

You can use the loss as motivation to change your work ethic.

And you can view it as more time to spend with your family now while forming a list of potential interviews for later.

Reframing alone won’t solve your problems, but it will keep you from dwelling on things outside your control.

Just make sure you base your reframe in reality. Don’t act like you’ve risen above the job you had after you’ve lost it.

You may very well have a better opportunity out there. But there’s no need to build a false ego. If you take a loss, learn from it and move on. No one is above anything.

When you base your reframe on a false truth, all you’re doing is deluding yourself. And doing that will cause more issues than the original problem did.

But anyway, that’s reframing in a nutshell. It’s easy to understand yet tough to master.

So if you’re new to this, it’s a good idea to start small with the daily problems in life. Those will prepare you for the harder challenges you face later on.

Remember that there is always a bright spot in any problem, but you have to find it first.

Creativity really is one of the pillars of a strong mindset. So make sure you always see the big picture.

Thoughts on a Page

Many people who deal with depression live inside their heads—they think much more than the average person. And if you think that much, you need to read and write.

I’ll focus on writing in this section.

Writing is just putting thoughts on a page. It’s taking your train of thought and organizing it to make sense. And it’s the organization part of writing that’s so therapeutic.

That’s because many of us don’t notice the quality of our thoughts until they’re staring us in the face. And when we do see them, we’re surprised by what they say.

That’s the biggest reason why I recommend you write on a consistent basis. You don’t have to publish anything—that’s not the point here. The point is to get your thoughts in front of you so you can analyze them.

Now the best tool for this is, you guessed it, a journal. And no, not one where you talk about how cute your crush is. You need to be very specific in how you use this to get results.

The first thing to do is write down all of what you’re thinking. You have to dump everything out your brain before you piece it back together.

This journal will be for your eyes only. So feel free to write about anything here.

Write down all the thoughts that dominate your mind no matter how dark they may be. Do that until you can’t think of anything else and then take a step away.

After doing that, you’ll feel relief—like you threw off a heavy burden.

Wait a few minutes and then come back to look at it all. When you see your thoughts in front of you later, you’ll realize that many of them were irrational, and you’ll wonder how you let them float around in your head for so long.

Everything else you wrote will have an underlying theme to it. You may be dealing with self-esteem issues, thoughts of inferiority, or a general disappointment that you allow to hold you back.

Once you find that theme in your words, trace it to a problem that’s either controllable or uncontrollable.

After that, reframe your perspective and create an action plan.

This whole process will force you to organize your thoughts and control your thinking patterns. But make sure you write all this by hand to get the best results.

For an idea of how this would work, let’s take a look at my story to see how I would use this strategy:

First, I would write about my situation like I did in Part 1.

Then I would walk away and come back to the journal later. After coming back, I would scratch out anything crazy like self-harm or suicide. Then I would see my underlying theme—failure to meet expectations.

From this point, I would reframe my problems and make a plan to work with what I had.

Then I would write down whatever I chose in the end. And that would leave me with a before and after picture of where I was at. I could then come back to my journal if I ever struggled with the same issue again.

This brain dump process is one of the best tools to evaluate your thoughts. I’ve used it plenty in my own journal but now the process is automatic. I just do it my head.

But until you get to that point, take note of this process and apply it to whatever you’re going through.

I’ve put all the steps below:

Write your dominating thoughts

Step away for a while

Come back and analyze what you wrote

Cross out irrational thoughts

Find the theme

Determine the problem

Reframe the problem

Write your action plan

The Fundamentals

Look at any great NBA player and you’ll see that they all have one thing in common: they’ve mastered the fundamentals.

Sure, some of them have insane physical gifts, but for every great player with a physical advantage, there’s a hundred athletic freaks who didn’t make the cut.

Guys like Jordan, Magic, and Kobe all performed moves that made people’s mouths drop. But when you look closely, you’ll see that those moves are only additions to basic parts of the game.

Those guys would have never been the players they were by building on what looked cool or felt right. They built upon the right moves no matter how old, boring, or tedious they were.

And building your mindset works the same way. You have to build on fundamental truths, no matter how harsh they may be.

One of the hardest pills to swallow is that the world isn’t obligated to care about your loneliness. The world isn’t obligated to care for your feelings. And it’s not obligated to care for how special you think you are.

You are responsible for your emotional state.

Now I know that’s tough to hear, especially if you’ve never had to humble yourself like this before. But once you learn to care for your own emotional needs, you can move on to what the world always cares about—value.

It doesn’t matter what failures you have, how much money you make, or even what you look like. The world always cares about what you’re willing and able to give.

I know I didn’t understand that during my rough years, and you may not understand it now, but it’s true. So instead of always searching for what you can get, find ways you can give to others instead. And guess what will happen when you do?

People will want to be around you. Money won’t be a problem. A stranger will see that some people do care.

Stop worrying about what you want, and focus on what others need. Become someone who willingly gives to others and your own needs will be more than taken care of.

The Power of Words

Remember how I said you should read and write? Well now we’re at the reading part.

Reading has been so valuable to me that I feel bad for people who don’t do it—they make life harder than it needs to be. I wouldn’t know to do 50 percent of my daily actions without reading about it somewhere. I can only imagine what those people have to work with.

They don’t understand that words are powerful. That they’re life changing.

Our schools overdo it sometimes with the whole “knowledge is power” thing, but for good reason. Almost every oppressive government in history made sure to destroy one thing—books.

My point is, if you’re depressed and you aren’t reading, you don’t stand a chance.

Back when I fought depression, I felt completely alone. I thought no one could relate to me. And looking at all the people around me then, I had good reason to think so. All I could see were people laughing with their friends while I was miserable.

I had to find help from elsewhere and that’s why I started reading. I read so much back then that I kept a bottle of Tylenol next to all my material.

Through reading, I found mentors, motivators, and friends. They were people I could relate to. People who had felt like I did and found a way to rise above it.

I learned more about the world through a year of reading than I had all throughout my years of school. And most of the challenges people complain about now became simple to me.

That may sound like an exaggeration, but you have to understand the impact words can have on your character.

Whenever you read, you open your mind to a new perspective. Just like in a normal conversation.

When you expose youself to the thoughts of others, you start to change the way you think. That new thought process shapes the way you act. And those consistent actions determine your character.

And that whole process started with a little reading.

“So where should I start?”

I’m glad you asked.

I’ll give a few recommendations here, but before I do that, I need to warn you about the danger of some reading too. The process above is helpful if you read good material, but if all you take in is garbage, that’s what you’ll get out.

So with that said, here’s where you can start:

The Bible

If there was one thing that helped me the most during this time, it was getting back into my Bible. And no, that’s not me pushing an agenda. That’s me telling the truth.

Earlier I said the world doesn’t really care unless you have something to offer, but there is Someone who always cares. And reading the Bible is how you learn more about Him.

The most common version of the Bible is the King James Version (KJV), but I think it’s best to read multiple versions to get the best understanding. Two of my favorites are the New American Standard Bible (NASB) and the New King James Version (NKJV).

Some translations are definitely better than others, but if you read any of those three, you’ll be fine.

I should also mention that the Bible has been around for centuries, and scholars have spent lifetimes making it easier for readers to understand. That’s why I think it’s best to use a study version instead of one that only has the text.

I personally have a NKJV study Bible that I love. It has summaries of individual books, commentary for almost all the verses, and articles about specific topics.

Now if you’re new to reading the Bible, I’d encourage you to start with the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Those are all about Christ and the work He did that was so important.

I’ll talk more in depth about all this in the future, but you can start there if you’re new.

But getting back to my specific experience with depression, there were two books of the Bible that helped me the most.

Proverbs

He who heeds the word wisely will find good, And whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he. (Proverbs 16:20 NKJV)

When I was kid, one of my favorite teachers bragged on the book of Proverbs all time, and those memories stayed with me years later. So when I decided to get back into the Bible, it was the first place I went.

Practical wisdom fills the pages of Proverbs, and that wisdom is still relevant for people today. The book covers everything from communication, financial planning, and even dealing with the opposite sex.

Proverbs differs from many of the other books of the Bible as it’s a collection of wise sayings, and not so much a book with a consistent subject throughout. However, its general nature makes it great for application to numerous parts of everyday life.

So if you need advice for how anyone can find happiness and live a truly successful life, the book of Proverbs is one of the first places you should go.

Ecclesiastes

Maybe your depression doesn’t stem from a problem at all. Maybe it’s just a feeling of emptiness—a void you can’t fill no matter what. Well that’s what the speaker in Ecclesiastes describes here:

Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind. (Ecclesiastes 2:17 NKJV)

It’s this ability to face the harsher parts of life that makes Ecclesiastes one of my favorite books of the Bible.

While the book is similar to Proverbs as it also contains guidance for practical living, the author focuses more on a big picture view of life itself. And while I wouldn’t call it a feel-good read, the author eventually describes how to find true purpose and live life to the fullest.

So check it out when you get the chance. People could save years of wasted time by reading Ecclesiastes and following its instruction.