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manonamora-if · 2 years

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Supporting your IF Authors: A tutorial (?)

I had made a small tutorial back on @interact-if a few months ago. Here is the very extended version. Also this is a very long post.

Obviously, you are not forced to do every single one of those actions below (it would be hypocritical of me to say so), but it helps show the authors their readerbase care about their works. Most action only takes a few seconds to a couple of minutes.

Let me know if I forgot something or made a mistake!

Note: while this is specific to IF authors, it can also be applied to other creators.

TLDR: Engage with stuff you like. Lurking might be nice and easy for you but can be detrimental to your fav author. Sharing is caring, y'all! Also, please don't keep the base avatar, it makes us think you are a bot. Don't behave like a bot.

On this Hellsite.

Many ways to interact with the authors you follow. Some are very simple but not really effective. Others require a bit more effort but really goes a long way.

Likes

The easiest to do. Just one click on the heart.

Pros: - tells your fav author you like their stuff. - easiest thing to do. Cons: - It's pretty much just a bookmark function on this site. - The "algorithm" doesn't really care for it.

ALSO: don't feel weird about going through the archive and like old posts. You'll prob find some gems there. LIKING OLD CONTENT IS NOT CRINGY!!!

Reblog

Requires maybe 3 more clicks and some typing if you add comments/tags. Still relatively easy. Best way to share what you like to others. The only way a post appears on a dashboard.

Pros: - tells your fav author you like their stuff in a more ✨🌟personalised 🌟✨way. - helps their post travel this hellscape and reach other people who could like this content (see addendum at the end). - the "algorithm" likes it. - you can queue them for a later date/so you don't spam your followers. Cons: None (lol).

Notes: - do not reblog posts with a #don't reblog tag. - consider adding trigger warnings to your reblogs if the original one has some too. - TEMPLATE/ASSETS/RESSOURCE: always reblog those to help your neighbour. Who knows? One of your followers or your follower's followers might be looking for that. Also: good karma. - post doesn't fit your ✨aesthetic ✨? have a side-blog and put it there.

Asks

Needs a bit more effort. You need to think of words to write or picture to send. Also, can feel a bit nerve-wracking interacting with someone you look up to (they're like you, don't worry). But one of the most rewarding note for authors.

Pro: - you have a direct line of communication with the author, making it easy to ask questions, give feedback/comments. - you can positively impact their days with a few words. Yup. Seriously. - most authors really like asks, it's probably the most engaging response you can get from your readers. - you can asks stuff anonymously (unless the author has turned it off), we've all done it. Cons: - you need to think of words to say and muster the courage to press ask. - it might not available because other people abused it/were dicks in the author's dm.

Ask Etiquette/Advice

Be nice and respectful! Just because you have a direct/anonymous like to that author doesn't mean manners can be thrown out the window. They are like everyone: humans with feelings. Internet may make it difficult to see other people as... well people, but they are. Don't be a dick. A Hello or How are you? really goes a long way.

Ask questions about the project/process Interested in a particular part of the project or the authors' process? Ask about it! We love to talk about our projects and characters.

Feedback doesn't have to be complex/long. If you don't know how to put your feelings about their works into words, take a small aspect of the project and explain why it stuck with you. I really liked how you portrayed X's relationship with Y. That scene with Z made me feel V. Or you can be a bit more generic (still add a bit of yourself): Your writing is great! The UI is very pretty. The game is amazing.

Don't demand things. Duh. That's rude.

Don't spam. Even if they don't reply to your question right away. They may have a reason not to do it. Or they want to keep your post for just themselves. May be ok for positive ones (ask first).

Replies

This is fairly new on Tumblr (2021?). They're pretty much comments without rebloging. Great for giving feedback/sending love to a specific post.

Pro: - Yay engagement. - Another way to send your fav author love! Cons: - That's it. It's not visible unless you open the notes of a post. Unsure if it makes any difference in the algorithm. - it is not anonymous.

Other ways

A non-exhaustive list:

Create fan art : Always appreciated, we love to see your interpretation of our work and your OCs. Caveat: only if the author allows it. Ask the author if you are unsure.

Participate in Beta-Testing : Big part of IF it testing before release. Many authors will have a call for beta a few weeks/months. Consider rebloging that too.

Answer Poll/Feedback forms : Aside from Beta-testing, authors may post a poll or ask for feedback for a functionality/path. This is a great way for us to get direct responses. Consider rebloging that too.

Published Platform

There are many places where an author can publish their games. Below are the most used/known ones. You will require an account for most of those (it's worth it, I promise).

ITCH.IO

Itch has a lot of games.

A LOT of Games. To help your favourite game gain traction, you need to... engage with it! All ways are super easy and takes very little time too!

Play the Game

Duh. (Also I lied about the time it takes, that will depend on the game) Account not required.

Collection

You can add games/assets/whatever page on a collection (folder) to keep it as a to play later or share as a game you enjoyed. You can make those collections public and share it to the world!

To do that, click on Add to Collection (top left corner on laptop, bottom bar on mobile) and choose the collection you want.

Rate the Game

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3. Nope, not joking. 3 clicks and that's it. Ready?

Click on Rate this... on the top-left corner of the page.

Click on the amount of stars you want to give.

And click Submit.

Aaaaand that's it. Easy-peasy.

For Mobiles: the UI is a bit wonky and doesn't give you the option to rate a game. As such, you have 2 options:

put your phone in landscape mode: the feature will be at the top of the page (see below, I took a random game from the front page).

put the page in desktop mode (Chrome, Firefox) and follow the same description as above.

NOTE: This functions is not available if the game has been submitted to a Jam/Comp and said Jam is in its voting period! It will be available again when the ranking/votes have been released. If possible, consider voting for that game in the Jam/Comp as well.

Review the Game

Want to give your rating a bit more depth? Or you have a comment you want to give the author? Then add a review to your rating before clicking on Submit! Note: The review is only visible to the author.

Leave a Comment

You can leave a comment at the bottom of the game's page. Can be a few words, can be an essay, whatever floats your boat.

Don't know what to say? Take a small aspect of the game and explain why it stuck with you. EX: I really liked how you portrayed X's relationship with Y. That scene with Z made me feel V. The UI/Design is W.

Also, you get notified if the creator answers your comment!

Share the game

There is not specific button on itch to share a game. BUT: you can copy the page's link and paste it wherever you want to share the game! Easy-peasy!

Other ways

Follow the Author: to get updated on the game's process, bugs fixes or updates.

Like/Comment on/Share Devlogs: those logs have a Tab similar to the main page where the most popular ones are more visible. You can like the logs on that log's page or in your feed if you follow that author; share directly on twitter/facebook (or copy paste the link to whatever platform); or comment on the page (if available).

Interact in the Community tab: a.k.a. Itch's forum. Discuss, review or recommend games there!

CoG Forums

Specifically for CScript games posted on Dashingdon or posted through CoG/HostedGames. Used for feedback, coding questions, writing questions... for CScript games.

Authors can create threads where the game can be discussed by other users. The thread locks itself automatically after 60 days since the last comment or if the author requests it.

As far as I know (not my preferred platform tbh), there are no rating systems on CoG. Games with payable content can be rated on other platforms (can be seen at the bottom of the page).

IFDB/IF Community Forum

IFDB - Interactive Fiction DataBase

As the name implies, the website works as a sort of archive/database for IF works. There are over 11k games (ongoing/completed) listed. Reviewing and Commenting is fairly easy. You can also put a game on your wishlist or indicate whether you've played it.

Rating is a one click job: on the amount of stars you want to give. And that's it!

Reviewing looks a bit more complicated at first, but I promise it's not too hard! The review link will send you to another page, where you will be asked to enter your comments about the game, add a title and optionally tag it. When you are done, click on the preview button at the bottom of the page. You get to review how your comment will look before publishing it (see below)

You can also create polls or participate in one, join a club, browse other reviews and game listings, etc...

IF Community Forum

Very similar to the CoG forum, but is open to other programs (Twine, Inform, Renpy...) and all sorts of IF (text base, VN, parser...). You can find help for coding or writing, talk about games you like....

There are special categories to review IF games or recommend some to other users.

As with every Forum communities, please be mindful of the rules of said forum before posting!

Steam

Thank you @pomegranate-cuties for the reminder.

If a game is to be published on Steam, adding it to your wishlist will increase its visibility before and on release.

You have the possibility to:

leave reviews and comments (SUPER IMPORTANT)

post screenshot or fanart

create guides and walkthroughs for other users.

interact in the community tab

Other platforms

If the project is hosted on other platforms, simply check if their page allows for rating/review, and get cracking!

Other Non-Monetary Support

Share game with friends/other websites

Words-of-mouth is a great way to help a game get more attention. And if one person talks to another person who talks to another person... that's already 3 more players right there :D

Talk about your favourite IF with your friends, or family. Mention it to acquaintances or people who you think might enjoy it.

If you'd rather avoid sharing your love to people you know IRL, you can always post about it on other platforms than the ones above. Talk about the game on websites like Reddit (there are IF communities there, albeit not very large), Twitter (if it survives, lol), Discord Servers, Forums, etc...

Obviously, don't spam people. That might reflect badly on the author.

Do Streaming Parties!

This comes with the caveat of: with the permission of the author.

Doing Let's Plays of games or discussing IF works on streams might be another good way to introduce more people to games you enjoy. This can give a different life to the work, especially if you actually read the text aloud and do voices. This way it can let the work even speak for itself.

Platforms like YouTube or Twitch are relatively helpful to set streaming up. Though you may require some specific hardware to run it.

If you plan on streaming a game, do ask the author beforehand.

Monetary support

If you can afford it or if your budget allows it, you can consider supporting your favourite author(s) with real money! You may get extra content or special features (ex: alpha release) for doing so.

Below are a few ways I've seen being used, but the best way is to follow the author's links/preferrence.

Tumblr: Tips/Subscriptions

This is a new functionality (2022), where you can now subscribe or tip a creator for their posts.

Note: Tumblr takes 5% commission on subscription but 0% on tips.

Patreon/Tipee

I think everyone knows about Pateron by now. Tipee if the European version of Patreon. They work the same way.

Note: Patreon charged your account when you sign up and on the 1st of every month + takes 9-12% commission on monthly income. Tipee is 8%.

Kofi

Another tipping platform (with less fees for the creator). Also used often for commissions.

Note: Kofi takes 0% to 5% commission + 3-4% from the payment processor.

Paypal/CashApp/Venmo/etc...

Another way to tip your author or pay for commission. Commission depends per platform.

Pay as you want/Donation Button Itch

Some authors have left the option to pay as much as you want or have a donation button on their game's page. You can donate/pay for the game this was as well!

Note: Itch takes a 10% commission on each sale EXCEPT on Creator's day (2/3 times a year).

ADDENDUM

Reblog posts to make them travel.

The images above are the Reblog Graph (Tumblr Lab Function), that shows part of the 100-ish reblog the intro post for my game @crimsonroseandwhitelily got since last year (original is the small red dot) and the one for the 80-ish reblogs of this post as of this edit (22 Aug 2022).

In the first one: there are a few branches that made that post travel and reach users who do not follow me but may have read the post and played the game. In the second, even if it has less reblogs, it has longer branches, showing how much it has travelled on this website. Note: a shame they don't have a function with likes too... That'd be useful.

#long post #support creators #support IF authors #IF authors #interactive fiction #like #reblog #review #rating #financial support #tutorial #guide #masterpost #edited #streaming #sharing #manonamora

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s9fti3 · 1 month

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I HAVE THE FUNNIEST REQUEST FOR YOU (because this actually happened to me and I need to tell someone send help please)

I started talking to this guy on a dating app a few days ago. He's a little younger than me and normally I don't really date people that are younger than me; for context, it's because I had to mature really early on (it's a whole thing, I won't get into it). Anyway, I gave him my phone number when he asked and so we've been texting ever since; he sends me cute little 'good morning' texts, tells me that he hopes I have a good day, etc. (entirely different from my last relationship of several years - for comparison, it's like I was dating Jane or Caius and suddenly jumped to Seth???).

SO ON SUNDAY, I had been up all night trying to get roleplay stuff together and I stupidly went down to the mini Mart by my house early in the morning (still sleep deprived) to get some coffee, and before I left, I took a cute little selfie in the car and sent it to him. Well I was all excited from how cute the selfie was, and when I climbed out of the car, I LOCKED MY KEYS IN THE CARRRRR FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE I WAS TWELVE.

ヽ(｡◕o◕｡)ﾉ

I haven't told him about it yet ...

I also found out that he roleplays like I do, and so I gave him my Sideblog. And when he followed me, I followed him back.

And I completely forgot that you can only follow from your main blog.

SO NOW THIS MAN CAN SEE ALL THE WEIRD THINGS I LIKE AND DO AND SEND HELP PLEASE

I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HE WAS FOLLOWING MY MAIN BLOG UNTIL I CHECKED MY FOLLOWERS BECAUSE TUMBLR DIDN'T NOTIFY ME????

ANYWAY, this is all a really long winded way of asking you if you could please ease my embarrassment and write something between Seth and the reader involving these situations and Seth finding out from the reader about it (because my embarrassment is great for writing and I think Seth would be so amused to find out he flustered someone that much)

Thank you for the request, Lovebug!! I hope you like this :) (I have no idea what I’m doing!)

‘Call me maybe?’- Seth Clearwater Headcannon!!

• You had just so happen to meet Seth through Jacobs 17th birthday party. The conversation was very tame, introducing yourself to one another, talking about up coming events and how you liked the small, yet fun party.

• Seth was going to leave early as he had his ‘studies’ to get to. You took your shot and walked over to him, saying your goodbyes and offering to stay in touch. You had given him your personal number- not your home number, which you usually did.

• Sooner or later you guys started talking… a lot. You guys had also just so happened to share your facebooks with one another over call, friending each other. A very new app, Tumblr, was also something you guys had used to communicate. Well, at least on a fake account that is…

• On a very uneventful day, you had came home and opened up all of your social media to see if anything had happened. New friend request on Facebook? Except. Checking to see if Seth had texted you on Tumblr? Nothing. You had went to your other account that was used for your silly likings. Such as books, or movies, or even just clubs! Your heart sunk when you went through your followers for fun.

• You face bad became at least 3 shades lighter than what it was originally. As if on queue, Seth had called. You stared at your phone before picking it up and flipping it open, clicking on the call button… ‘Hello?’ Your voice ran over the line. ‘You’re into ___? Never knew!’ Seth said over the phone. Embarrassed you were. ‘Hey uh Seth, I’m going to have to hang up. I only have a few more minutes until my minutes run out and I can’t call anymore.’ You replied, almost wanting to die. ‘Huh? You said you had bought some extra minutes like… 2 days ago?’ He said confused. ‘Talk to you later, bye!’ I don’t think you’ve ever hung up the phone so fast.

• As if death had taken you by the hand, you avoided Seth, every chance you got. Of course it broke the poor boy’s heart, but over time you both overcame this little embarrassing moment, and now your telling it at your 3rd anniversary with Seth.

#twilight x you #twilight x y/n #twilight headcanon #twilight #twilight x reader #seth clearwater #seth clearwater x reader #seth Clearwater Headcannons #seth Clearwater fluff #seth clearwater fanfic #jacob black #twilight fanfiction #seth clear water x you

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biboomerangboi · 2 months

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So you want to your local tumblr Creator?

Okay with all the AI art things coming out and also some new users I thought I’d show you all good ways to support creators on this platform.

First you’re going to want to go into your settings click into visibility and manually turn off the third party sharing feature.

Yes even if you aren’t an artist or don’t post anything at all. The more users that turn this on the more Tumblr can see we don’t want AI here.

This is literally the bare minimum of what you can do and if that’s all you want to do that’s fine.

However if you want to support creators more you need to understand that likes don’t do anything on this platform. With a lot of new users I’m seeing more and more ratios like this:

Which is fine all notes are good notes we all appreciate your like on our art but this is the reblogging site. There’s no algorithm! Likes don’t boost our art that much, other than maybe bringing us to the top of the tag. What helps is reblogging. This site is built for that and it is quick and easy.

Literally all you have to do is hit the reblog button beside the like button and hit post. You don’t need tags or anything on your own blog. It really is quick and simple. Literally it only takes one second more than liking alone.

Now you might be saying Zee I want to reblog but I don’t want to spam my blog, I’m only on tumblr at 20 minute intervals I don’t want to to clog up other peoples dashes with my reblogs and that’s fine I got you.

Let me tell you about the queue function. Tumblr has a built in awesome system called the queue.

It’s really quick and easy to use all you have to do is hit the reblog button, hit the three dots to the side, hit queue and boom your reblog is now added to your queue.

Now what does the queue actually do? Basically it allows for your reblogs to go out at random times throughout the day without you doing anything. For example mine posts 10 times a day during the whole 24hr period. This is because as you can see I have a lot of art in my queue, you don’t need to have that much but you can. The queue is literally limitless.

To modify your queue can also hit that cog button and modify it to suit your every whim. And boom there you go a quick and easy way to help creators from your mobile without any hassle.

You can even shuffle your queue so on days when discover a new interest and go through the entire tag liking and reblogging things you can mix it around with the stuff you regularly reblog to not overwhelm your followers with your new special interest! It's great!

Now if you want to push this one step further, maybe you like having tags on your posts to keep your blog organised, but you don’t want the hassle of typing out all those tags in 20 mins. Then don’t worry, I got you.

You see I kinda lied, the like button does have a function. It’s great as working as a bookmark. So if your in public and you want to show love for something then go on ahead and like that thing. Then when you get home you’re going to want to pull out your laptop and boot up tumblr and xkit. Which you can get here!

Once you have xkit up your going to want to go to quick tags and set up your tag buddles. These tags are then autosaved and easy edited making reblogging and adding to your queue incredibly easy. You can even add in your own rambly tags and keep the bundle.

Honestly you don't even need to do it everyday, sure it saves some time but I usually try to update my queue once every two weeks or so (I forgot for like a month this time thats why my queue is so big, I had to go very far back, Don't be a me. It's stressful.) By using your likes as a bookmark you keep all the art and then can backdate everything you've liked in past few weeks, but honestly you don't need to do this. I do because I can be very Type A about running a blog but no one is going to hate you for spam reblogging or for reblogging without tags but please think about reblogging stuff to give a creator a much needed boost of serotonin. Remember that most creators are here for free and just want to share the thing they love with other people so keep the cycle alive and reblog stuff.

#This has been your PSA #tumblr tags #tumblr #artists of tumblr #artists on tumblr #say no to ai art #tgcf #he xuan #zukka #since they are technically there

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hummingbird-games · 2 months

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Dev Diaries

April 4th, 2024

😃When did writing updates become such a chore to me??? I remember when I was excited to share what I was doing, grrrrrrrrrr...

Well. Here's what's happening in Gemini World:

The Knight Dance HOPEFULLY will go live this month because the team and I are entering it in the Amare Festival. I really want y'all to play this game but I also have been working on it for so long that I want to check it off my list lol.

Please check Ko-fi for free posts (and if I'm not posting enough HSD on Tumblr, which, I'M SO SORRY!!!) The most recent thing I threw in the queue was a certain student's I.D. card 👀 but I have plans to put everyone's on there!

HSD: JY #2 is getting its updated, non-snapshot demo this summer! Also, I'd like to clear up some confusion. As awesome as it would be, the full game is not coming out this year. The focus is to put out this last demo and then hunker down and finish writing. As of this post, I decided to write Ryan's full route from top to bottom. His common route content and Billie's are the only finished ones (and may or may not make an appearance in the upcoming demo. lol idk yet). However, Ryan's route has been crystalized in my mind for MONTHS so I figure we'll get my boy out the way so I can focus on the rest of the children 🥲Remember, Florence still doesn't have an outline and das not good....

One of the things I want to be better about with this sequel is embracing the spectrum that is asexuality and aromanticism. I did...something with the first game ☠️ but I feel like the rep could have been better in a lot of places (and I identify as ace, not aro, so I KNOW rep could have been better 🤧)

Having a friendship route was a solid decision, and even if most players didn't fool with it, a few let me know that they played HSD #1 for that feature. Which is cool because I'm tired of playing games that make ending up with a friend character a consolation. FRIENDSHIP IS NOT A CONSOLATION!!!

That said, there are STILL so many things that I won't be able touch on in HSD #2, but I don't claim to be the authority on any sexuality. The above screen is only seen in the friendship route and gives flavor dialogue that can help players define their MC. As someone who came into her asexuality waaaay past her HS and college days, I didn't have the representation to better explain and understand myself, so. Yup.

Alsoooo while we're going on about this sequel, no spoilers but even if you pick a romance route, you're not safe from friend angst 🤷🏽‍♀️Now, if your MC is directly affected or just a poor bystander...?👀🔍

And that's it! April is gonna be SO MUCH FUN because so many game updates are dropping

Our Wonderland finale *sob*

TCT DLC bonus stories

Date With Death DLC Kickstarter

chapter 7 release date announcement for College Craze

Breathless Winds release

And other stuff I probably forgot! So yeah. Heading to work now, but I hope all of y'all have a great day/night, and I'll see you in the next update! 💛

- Gemini

#game development #gamedev #updates and things #the knight dance #high school daze: junior year 2 #( I did not check this for typos sooo that's a problem for future gem!!)

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thessalian · 7 months

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Thess vs MCM Comic Con, Day 1

Well, first of all was yesterday, with Marion (one of my D&D players) arriving in London. She settled in nicely, I sat her down in front of Honour Among Thieves and Nimona, and the first few episodes of The Sandman, and we did some basic prep for the upcoming con. Only down sides involved the kitchen sink, which decided to back up on us. That still hasn't been entirely fixed but I'm working on it in stages.

This morning, we got up and headed for the convention, which ironically went a lot easier for me than for Marion - first she forgot to get her ticket verified at the same time as I was getting mine, and then she offered him the wrong confirmation email (she went to a smaller con here a few weeks ago). But we got it sorted out and headed in to see the things.

Good news is that they learned their lesson from the 2018 Critical Role panel and will be streaming it to every stage in the building. Bad news is that they underestimated the popularity of Baldur's Gate 3 and we couldn't even get near the queue for their panel. Apparently they're doing another one tomorrow but honestly, we might not bother. The stream's bound to end up on YouTube at some point anyway.

We wandered. I bought a set of dice (Scanlan-themed, mostly because I like purple), and picked up a lot of business cards. There's some neat stuff that I'll go over when there's not someone trying to sleep in the next room. I also threw axes because ... why not? Apparently my form was perfect and I would have done better than three out of eight if I'd put a bit more power behind my throws. Honestly, given the fibromyalgia, I'm surprised I did as well as I did. There are pictures - another one for later.

Then we went home via the big Sainsbury's, and I picked up drain cleaner (which has not really helped) and eventually put some dinner together. More Sandman and various other bits of fun.

Tomorrow is autograph and picture day. That's mainly what we're both there for, but we're happy to see a few panels if the mood takes us. Having to be a little careful about the spending this time around, though, because apparently my overtime pay has not gone through. Again. So I'm going to have to email Scruffman about that. But being on a budget isn't so bad. Although oddly, one of the three purchases I made today wasn't at the con at all. There was a bin of Squishmallows at the big Sainsbury's and while most of them were green dragons, there was one purple manatee. All by itself. Purple. Manatee. Squishmallow. It was like it was put there just for me.

Right. I'mma go crash. Tomorrow's a big day and I should be well-rested for it.

#mcm expo

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crystalninjaphoenix · 7 months

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Eye of the Storm

Switch AU

A JSE Fanfic

Almost forgot to queue this because I was having so much fun with my friends haha. Anyway I'm very tired as I write this author's note so I'll be brief. This is mostly setup for the next chapter, and some exposition. JJ and Marvin look into some magic stuff, once again investigating that strange crystal ball. Meanwhile, Schneep thinks he's found where Jackie is. And yeah. A buncha stuff happens. Enjoy haha.

More of This AU | | First Chapter | Previous Chapter

Hey JJ. Those sound like some pretty serious issues. Do you want to meet up to talk about it in person?

JJ read the text from Persephone again, then looked up and scanned the restaurant. He was in the Waffle Cone, the same place where Aoife first introduced him to Persephone, the head of the Magic Circle. He was even sitting at the same table against the left wall. The waiter had been over a couple times to ask for his order, but he explained through writing that he wanted to wait for someone.

After what felt like forever, Persephone finally walked in. She noticed JJ right away and hurried over. “I am so sorry, I got caught up at work,” she said, sitting down.

Magic Circle things?

“No, I mean my actual job. What, d’you think running a magician coven pays the bills?” She laughed, then became serious once more. “Okay. But let’s get to this right away. This sounds like a complicated mess you’re in. Where do you want to start?”

JJ thought about it. Do you remember what I told you about Anti?

“The mind-control, right?” Persephone nodded. “That’s... pretty bad. Any magician who put someone under a spell like that would be immediately locked up for using strong black magic. This Distorter thing was able to just... do that?”

Well, Anti had been isolated for a couple days, JJ said. By that group I was looking for. IRIS. I think Distorter took advantage of that to... break him down.

“Hmm.” Persephone pursed her lips. “It’s... hard to know where to stand on Distorter. Aoife and I have done some research. He might be a Void, but I’ve never heard of a Void being so proficient in mental powers.”

What is a Void?

“Someone who has been consumed by a dark power.”

JJ sighed. That would make sense.

“But if Distorter is a Void, he’s not a normal one,” Persephone emphasized. “And honestly, a Void status would not help us to figure out Anti’s situation.” She paused. “Do you guys have any ideas at all?”

Our friend Stacy seemed to distract Distorter before, JJ recalled. Anti came out of the trance for a time while he was concerned with her.

“So you can distract him for a minute. That’s good. I did bring a list of counterspells.” Persephone reached into her purse and pulled out a few pieces of paper stapled together. “Maybe you could cast one while Distorter is distracted and it’ll dispel the power keeping Anti under his control.”

JJ raised an eyebrow at the list. Each page was covered in handwriting, on both sides. That’s a lot.

“There’s a lot of counterspells. And they’re always very long, which, by the way, have I ever mentioned how impressive it is that you can cast magic without spell words or some sort of implement like a wand?”

Practice, JJ said. My stage mask IS an implement, though, so if you see me wearing it casually, it’s because it makes things easier. But back to the topic at hand. What if the Circle helped with these counterspells? We both know multiple magicians makes magic stronger. Everyone couldn’t fit in the hospital, but surely we could bring Anti to the meeting house.

“Counterspells don’t work like that,” Persephone muttered sadly. “They’re sort of... they run opposite to all the usual rules. It’s why most magicians don’t even try to learn them. And I don’t think there’s a spell spell that could help your friend Anti.”

JJ sighed. He expected that, honestly. But it didn’t mean he wasn’t disappointed. What about IRIS? he asked.

“Oh yeah, we can totally help you find another one of their facilities if you need to,” Persephone said. “But remember. It was very tiring for us.”

Of course I remember that. He could vividly feel the lurch as their spells slammed into IRIS’s strange artificial power over and over again.

“So you have to be sure where this facility is,” she said. “And be sure that your friend is there. We probably won’t be able to do that two nights in a row. Hell, maybe not even two weeks in a row.”

That complicated things. It meant that JJ would have to rely on Schneep to find where Jackie was. But he nodded understandingly anyway. We’ll be sure. Now. Is there anything you want to tell me?

“Found anything else out about that crystal ball with the time magic in it?”

JJ shook his head. Not at all. I haven’t seen any more strange images in it. He’d tried a couple times, late at night mostly, staring into his own reflection in the hope that he could somehow divine a solution to this... this calamity they were in. Can you help with that?

“I can’t, but Aoife can. She’s the diviner, remember?” Persephone gave a little chuckle. “Call her sometime. Or... text her. Or you could FaceTime her, then she could see your signs.”

JJ groaned a little. How have I never thought about video calls for sign communication?

Persephone laughed. “Everyone has a blind spot. Don’t worry about it. Call her sometime, okay?”

I certainly will after realizing that.

“Great. Did you order food?”

JJ was a bit surprised at the sudden change in subject, but he rolled with it. No, I figured I should wait for you. I’m not too hungry anyway.

“Well I am. So let’s get something. We can talk about more magic while we do. I’m sure you have more questions about the Circle.”

And so they ordered.

———————

True to his word, Jameson called Aoife almost as soon as he got home, pausing only to tell Marvin everything Persephone had told him. Marvin was just as disappointed as he was to hear the Circle couldn’t help with Anti. “It woul’ve been awkward, anyway,” he said, covering up said disappointment. “We woul’ be jus’ standin’ around as you and all your magician friends did t’at.” And when JJ mentioned he was going to go up to the workroom and call Aoife about the crystal ball, Marvin said he would come, too. “I’m jus’ as curious about the t’ing as you are, y’know.” JJ pointed out that the wheelchair couldn’t go upstairs. But Marvin insisted. So JJ gave in and helped him up.

So now the two of them were there. Marvin sat in the room’s one chair—a swivel chair paired with the desk—while JJ propped his phone up using the pop socket and a scarf, and called Aoife through FaceTime.

It took a while before she picked up. When she did, it looked like she was somewhere... old? An old library? The reference section of an old library? JJ could see bookshelves of binders behind her. “Jameson? What’s up?” she asked in a quiet voice.

Is this a bad time? JJ asked.

“No, it’s fine, I was just doing paperwork for an old case. It can wait. What is it?”

I wanted to ask more about this. JJ held up the black crystal ball, careful not to touch it with his hands and instead using another scarf as a barrier.

“Have you seen anything else in there?”

JJ shook his head, put the crystal ball down again, and signed, The opposite, actually. I’ve been trying but nothing happens.

“What have you been doing to try?”

JJ paused. Last time it activated when I just touched it, so... that? And pouring magic into it.

Aoife shook her head. “I don’t think that would do anything.”

Why not? It did last time.

“How do I put this... sometimes old magic items will randomly become super sensitive. I’m not sure how old the crystal ball is, but I know I had it for years, and the Circle had it for years before me.”

JJ frowned. Somehow, that explanation sounded... wrong. Like it wasn’t what was happening. What about me pouring magic into it?

“Raw power?” Aoife asked. When JJ nodded, she continued. “Yeah no, that wouldn’t work. Divination is very specific magic, very tricky to wield. Most people can’t do it on their own, they need special tools. And before you say the crystal ball could be a tool, I’ll remind you it isn’t even supposed to have time magic in the first place. It’s not the right kind of crystal.”

“T’is is all very fascinatin’, and I do mean t’at,” Marvin said. “But can we get it t’work at all, t’en?”

“Oh! God, Marvin, you scared the bejeezus out of me.”

“Sorry! Forgot I was out of frame.” Marvin wheeled the desk chair into view of the phone with his good leg and cane. “Hello, Aoife. Nice t’see ye.”

“Nice t’see ye too,” Aoife repeated, her Irish accent briefly becoming stronger. “Anyway. You want it to work again?”

JJ nodded.

“Well, check first that it still has magic in it. Do you know how to do a Revelation?”

Another nod. JJ learned it after seeing Persephone do it one time.

“Do it, then.”

JJ held a hand over the crystal ball. He pulled his stage mask down over his face and concentrated. A light blue mist curled around his fingers and fell onto the crystal.

The black crystal surface changed immediately, the reflections on it disappearing. Instead, a tunnel appeared. It seemed to disappear into the crystal, a vortex of blue and orange swirling into infinity. It only appeared for a second, and then it was gone, and the ordinary reflections were back.

Aoife started to say something, but was interrupted when Marvin shouted. He wheeled closer to the table where the crystal was. “T’at—! T’at was—! T’at—!”

Marvin? JJ signed, confused. Calm down.

“Spiral!” Marvin shouted. “The spiral tunnel!”

What’s the spiral tunnel? JJ asked, confused.

“I... I-I don’ remember!” Marvin clutched his head. “I don’ remember, but t’at’s it!”

“Have you seen that before?” Aoife asked from the phone screen.

“Yes!” Marvin’s head shot up again and he pointed at her insistently. “Yes, I’ve seen it before!”

When? JJ asked, curious.

“I... I don’ remember!” Marvin slumped in his seat. “But I know I have. I know I have.”

“Well, that spiral tunnel also appeared when Persephone Revealed the crystal’s magic to us a couple weeks ago, so it must be a sign of that time magic,” Aoife said. “You’re JJ’s man-out-of-time friend. Maybe... you saw it when you arrived here. Or, now.”

We never figured out where that time magic came from, either, JJ recalled.

“Do you t’ink...” Marvin paused, swallowing a lump in his throat. “Is t’ere any way I caused it?”

“Did you ever come into contact with the crystal?” Aoife asked.

“Yes... one day, the day Distorter... used Anti to take me to...” Marvin’s voice got steadily quieter, until eventually it faded away entirely.

JJ’s eyes widened. Marvin, didn’t you see Anti in the reflection of the crystal? And then he attacked you?

“From behind...” Marvin whispered, revelation dawning on his face. “The way he got me t’at day. From behind. A-and I saw him behind me in the crystal.”

“Alright, forget what I said about old magic items being sensitive,” Aoife dismissed. “The reason Jameson saw visions while simply touching it is probably because the crystal was recently imbued with the magic at that point. By now it’s settled so it will be harder to activate.”

“You agree, t’en?” Marvin pressed. “T’at magic came from me?”

“Most likely. From what I know, the timeline seems to add up. Marvin, you’re a witch, aren’t you?”

“I’m—e-excuse me?”

“Someone who uses magickal items and rituals on a regular basis,” Aoife explained.

“I... do have my magickal cards,” Marvin said slowly. “But how do you know t’at?”

Aoife blinked. “I’m... not sure. It must have been one of my feelings.”

We always trust Aoife’s feelings, JJ said to Marvin. She did think something was wrong about those IRIS cameras, remember?

“Alrigh’, alrigh’.” Marvin decided to move on. “But what does me bein’ a... witch... have t’do with t’is whole mess?”

“That’s the question,” Aoife mused. “As a witch you don’t have magic of your own, you shouldn’t be able to imbue objects with power by yourself. Did you have your cards at that point?”

“...no.” Marvin slowly shook his head.

This is all very confusing, JJ said. But, I called you for a purpose, Aoife. How do I use the crystal ball’s magic again? To see the visions?

“Hmm.” Aoife thought about it. “Marvin. Can you touch it first? Maybe it needs... a refresh?”

“I s’pose it’s worth a try,” Marvin said, shrugging. He pushed his chair right up to the table and reached out. “Do I... pick it up?” JJ nodded, so Marvin took a deep breath and grabbed the crystal ball in both hands. He stared at his reflection on its surface.

“Do you see anything unusual?” Aoife asked quietly.

“I t’ink...” Marvin paused. “I t’ink the room behind me is diff’rent? T’ere are no bookshelves, and the walls are lighter in color.” He laughed. “T’at’s not as big a clue for the future as Anti bein’ behind me. All t’is means is I’ll be in a different room eventually.”

That’s still proof that there’s some time magic still in there, Jameson said. Aoife? Do you think I can activate it now?

“Touch it and see if you see anything,” Aoife suggested.

JJ nodded slowly. He reached out to take the crystal ball from Marvin—

An image flashed before his eyes. A single vision, one of the many he��d seen that day. Jackie, sitting at a computer screen in a dark room. Only now... now the image was clearer. Crisper. He could see more of the room, though its plain office-like appearance told him nothing. What mattered more... was the image he could see on the sleeve of the white coat Jackie was wearing. It resembled an eye, with three circles for irises.

And then it was gone.

“You saw somet’ing, didn’ you?” Marvin asked. “Your expression... went all shocked... all of a sudden.”

JJ took a deep breath, and raised his hands to sign shakily. I saw Jackie sitting in an office, at a computer. He was wearing a white coat... with IRIS’s logo on it.

“...oh,” Marvin whispered.

Well, that’s not very helpful, JJ said, trying to dismiss the shock of what he’d seen. We know Jackie is working for IRIS now.

“Sometimes it helps to think of visions as guidance, or as confirmation,” Aoife said.

“So... it’s tellin’ us t’at we shoul’ definitely find Jackie before we deal with Anti’s situation?” Marvin guessed.

Or it’s confirming that Jackie really is working for them like we thought, JJ said. Then he paused. I saw that same vision before... just less clear. Was it... always trying to tell us this...?

“It must have,” Aoife confirmed.

“If it was tellin’ us the same t’ing weeks ago... does t’at mean our future is locked...?” The expression on Marvin’s face could only be described as ‘overwhelmed by gloom.’

“Now boys,” Aoife said firmly. “That’s not true. The whole reason divination is hard for those who don’t have the natural talent is because the future is so uncertain. Having the same vision twice in a row just means it hasn’t changed yet. Or, it has, but that particular event isn’t what changed. Or it has but the meaning of the event is different now. It’s all very complicated. Don’t worry too much about the future.”

JJ blinked, as if that concept was completely foreign to him.

“We’ll work on t’at,” Marvin said hurriedly.

“In any case, it’s possible that the crystal ball won’t be able to show you visions frequently,” Aoife said. “Okay? So don’t put all your hopes on that, either.”

We’ll try, JJ said. But if we do want to see a vision, Marvin has to do it first?

“Seems like it. But really.” Aoife brought her phone close to her face and narrowed her eyes. “Try not to worry. It’s not good for you, JJ.”

JJ laughed. I’ll try. I’ll talk to you again some other time, okay?

“Okay.” Aoife leaned back again. “Goodbye, then.”

Goodbye. And with that, JJ ended the call.

———————

Schneep’s eyes were really starting to hurt. He’d been doing nothing but stare at a computer screen ever since they decided to focus their efforts on finding Jackie. Had he... gone to sleep last night? He couldn’t remember. And honestly, he didn’t feel too worse for wear if he didn’t. That scared him a little. Sure, it was helpful, but he didn’t ask for that.

He would have taken the chance to be immune to Distorter’s tricks if it was offered. But it was not offered.

“Hör auf darüber nachzudenken,” he muttered to himself. Stop thinking about it. Stop thinking about it. But he couldn’t help it. How could he not think about it?

By continuing to look through IRIS’s files. That’s how.

He lied to himself earlier when he said he’d done nothing but stare at the computer screen. In truth, he snuck up north yesterday to try and download more of IRIS’s database. He got some. Would it be enough? Would it be...

...

Yes. It was enough.

Schneep reread what he’d found over and over again. This was up to date, right? It was accurate, right?

Yes. Yes!

He had to call the others. He had to talk to them. Who first? Hah. He wondered that, but there was only really one option. And so he picked up his phone and dialed Rama’s number.

It rang for a long time before the other end picked up. “Who is this?” Rama asked.

Right. He’d gotten another new phone. “Rama? It is me, Henrik,” he said. “I found him.”

Rama’s attitude instantly shifted. “You did?! Where? Where is Jackie?!”

“He is stationed at an IRIS facility east of Mirygale,” Schneep said quietly. “It was converted from an old prison, like the one to the north. Recently, yes, too. I have the coordinates. For, ah, ah... for the GPS. I mean.”

“Can you text them to me?”

“Now? Yes, hold onto your... hat.” Schneep pulled the phone away from his ear and sent a text to Rama, making sure to carefully copy down the coordinates on his computer screen. “There. Did you get that?”

A moment of silence. “Yes, I did.”

“Good. We must act as soon as possible. We must act to find him and, ahhh... get him out of there. Or, stop him? He’s doing nothing, I’m sure, but IRIS has goals, and they might be... something he is helping with... not knowingly.”

“Henrik? Are you... okay?” Rama asked, sounding concerned.

“What are you meaning? Of course I am.”

“You sound, uh... really fucking weird.”

“Am I? I mean, do I?” Schneep leaned back in his chair and stared at the motel ceiling. “I do not feel weird.”

“Well, maybe you do but you don’t realize it. How much sleep did you get last night?”

He didn’t remember. “I’m sure it was enough, I feel full of energy.”

“Yeah, ‘I’m sure it was enough’ is not how well-rested people respond to that question. Take a moment to actually look at yourself.”

“In the mirror?” Schneep asked, and giggled.

“I meant metaphorically,” Rama said seriously. “Look inward. Think about how you feel. You may think you’re full of energy, but that could just be your body running on adrenaline.”

“I don’t want to look inward, there are things there now,” Schneep whispered. “The Distorter was here. I saw him when he did not want me to. It’s because there are things there now. I have a scar on... I have them all over.”

“Henrik,” Rama said softly.

“This is not the time. We have to go get Jackie.” Schneep stood up, stumbling for a moment before something in his legs naturally corrected him. No, wait. That was just him. He did that. By himself. “I will be right where you want to meet me, and I will be there right away.”

“We can’t go get Jackie right away,” Rama said, pain in their voice. “I fucking want to, but... but apparently the IRIS facilities have themselves some strange shield around them that makes it impossible for you to see anything even when you know it’s there. Last time, when they went looking for Anti, JJ had to get a lot of other magicians to help him break that shield. So even if we go there, we can’t do anything.”

“I don’t want to do nothing.” Why did his eyes feel wet? Why did they feel... weak? He’d thought about this recently, he wondered if they were a different shade of blue. Or maybe only one? He wasn’t sure. He didn’t want to look into the mirror to check for sure. “I-I don’t want to do nothing,” he said again, voice breaking.

“You won’t be doing nothing. Waiting isn’t nothing.” Rama was clearly trying to reassure him, but he didn’t think it was working.

“I wait for everything,” Schneep muttered. He stood in the center of the room, one arm dangling loosely as the other pressed the phone close to his face. “I waited for so much. I wait, I wait, I wait, the only thing there was the worry, the... more than worry, the... Furcht. I cannot remember what the word is. But it was just me and it, and the wait, the wait, the wait for them to come... And then when the wait is over they take you back and it starts again, and you look at yourself, and you think... you think there is something in there that was not before... I was asleep. I was asleep. Except for the mistake. I was asleep. But I knew even before the mistake...”

“Henrik!” Rama’s shout snapped Schneep out of whatever trance he’d just slipped into. “You need to rest.”

“I don’t want to fall asleep.” Schneep’s own voice was so quiet he wasn’t sure Rama could hear him. “Even if it was better than the mistake where I was not. I don’t want to fall asleep.”

“You have to try. You cannot function without it. As I can tell just over the phone.” Rama paused. “Nothing... nothing will happen to you, okay? There won’t be anything new when you wake up.”

“...do you promise?” Schneep hated that he just asked that. Like a child looking to their parents for reassurance that there was nothing in the closet. But he... he had to. He had to have that reassurance, real or imagined.

“I promise,” Rama said. “And when we break through IRIS’s shield, I will call you to tell you. And then we can go get Jackie. Okay?”

“Okay.” He took a deep breath. “Thank you, Rama. I am sorry I’m being so... foolish.”

“You’re the least foolish person I know, Henrik.”

“...Thank you,” Schneep said again, and hung up.

So maybe he did still need sleep. And as he laid down on the bed and drifted off, that fact brought him a strange comfort.

———————

Do you think we could try tonight?

Tonight? I guess we could call an urgent meeting like we did last time. Are you sure tho? Thats really soon.

Yes. I’m sure.

“So you’ll be tryin’ t’at same spell with the Circle now, t’en?” Marvin asked, looking over at JJ in the entrance hall from his spot in the living room.

JJ nodded. I really don’t think we should waste any time.

“Because of the crystal ball visions?”

No, but they certainly didn’t help, JJ said. Will you be okay with me gone? If I recall, last time you were home alone while I was out at this, you left the house late at night on sketchy instructions from Schneep.

“I did, but t’at’s how I got my cards bask, isn’ it?” Marvin shuffled said cards on his lap. Mr. Flufflington, lying on the sofa nearby, suddenly raised his head in surprise at the shuffle sound. “Oh, sorry, Mister. Didn’ mean to wake you up. Anyway, don’ worry about me, Jems, I’m not plannin’ on goin’ anywhere.”

You weren’t planning on going anywhere last time, either, JJ pointed out.

“Well, I’m even less so now.”

JJ stared at him for a moment, then nodded. I’ll be back late again. Don’t wait for me.

“Good night, t’en. And good luck.”

Good night. JJ said that, then left, the front door locking behind him.

Well, with Marvin alone he had to figure out how to spend the rest of the night. Normally he’d read a book and then head to bed... but after earlier, he wanted to look at his cards some more. He was trying to form new patterns with them, balancing a tray across his wheelchair arms for a flat surface.

The two unknowns were bothering him. The jokers. He didn’t know why he had this nagging feeling that they were important. Was it simply because they didn’t know what their symbols meant?

Curious, he separated the two of them from the rest, lying them face-down on the tray so he could examine the runes on the back. An angled spiral with an X over it. That was a much more complicated symbol than any of the others. Did that mean it was powerful? The higher-value cards did seem to have broader concepts—and maybe more powerful runes. Jokers were wild. They could be anything. That was a sort of power.

What would happen if he tried to make a pattern with them?

Marvin debated that for a second, and then decided that nothing ventured, nothing gained. All of the successful patterns he’d found so far had needed at least one of the aces, so he grabbed the Ace of Hearts, with its rune meaning “mark” or “creation.” He placed it in between the two jokers, trying to find an arrangement where the lines on the back designs of the cards matched up. But nothing worked. Maybe he needed more cards?

He searched through the deck and found the King of Hearts. The rune on its back meant, funny enough, “heart” or “life.” Then he grabbed the Five of Hearts (“leaf” or “growth”) as well, because why not make this a heart suit party? Idly, he started messing with the five cards, shifting their positions relative to the others, bending close over—

Marvin screamed. His leg—his broken leg, it—it hurt again! “Fuck!” It was piercing, burning, sharp pain—

Instinctively, he swept a hand over the five cards, dislodging the formation they’d been in. And the pain instantly stopped. He sat there, breathing, for a moment, getting over the sudden agony and its even more sudden disappearance. Then, tentatively, he reached down and gently prodded the injury. It didn’t feel like it had rebroken. Good. Good.

“What the fucking hell was that about?” Marvin asked himself. He looked down at the cards. What pattern had they been in...? Right. The two jokers vertical on either side, with the other three horizontal and stacked on top of each other. Though he was morbidly curious to try it again, he resisted; he didn’t really feel like experiencing his leg breaking all over again. That wasn’t what happened, of course... but it certainly felt like it.

And though that probably should have warned him off from experimenting with his cards for the night, it didn’t. He merely put the jokers to the side once more and resumed. Their angled spirals seemed to shift in the corner of his eyes. Getting smaller and bigger, closing and opening.

———————

Schneep was awoken by a ringing sound. He started up, panic rushing into his heart—then realized it was his phone. Quickly he reached over to the nightstand and picked it up to check the caller ID. It was Rama again. So soon?

Wait... it wasn’t soon at all. The clock on the nightstand read 7:01... am, not pm. And there was early gray sunlight coming through the curtains. And his stomach was rumbling. When was the last time he’d eaten something?

The phone was still ringing. Sitting up, Schneep answered the call. “Hello?”

“Henrik? It’s Rama. Good morning.”

“It is morning, isn’t it?” he muttered, then laughed. “I have been asleep since you last called me.”

“Good,” they said firmly, sincerely. “It sounded like you needed it.”

“I did, I did.” Schneep nodded. “But to serious business. I can only guess you’re calling me because of Jackie.”

“Yes. Jameson and his magicians did that same spell, they found a second IRIS facility right where you said it would be. Well, it was a bit complicated, we had to actually drive out to the location first and that took a while—but after all that, it was there. We are planning on going there today. In only a couple hours if possible.”

“Good.” Schneep nodded. “Give me time to get ready and eat something.”

“You’re coming?!” Rama didn’t bother to hide their surprise. “But... your history...”

“I know,” Schneep said quietly. “But that is why I must go with you. Together we can provide Jackie with enough reasons to see sense. You can tell him why it was such a bad idea to leave... and I can tell him what IRIS is truly doing.”

Rama was silent for a moment. Then they sighed. “It’s up to you. What time would be okay with you? Nine o’clock?”

“That sounds good. Let’s meet at the park again. Will it be just the two of us?”

“No, Jameson is coming too.”

“Not Marvin, though?” Strange, Schneep would’ve thought Marvin would insist on coming even with a broken leg.

“No, he said he wanted to work on things with those magick cards of his. As for Jack and Stacy, well, Jack says someone should stay behind with Anti in case there are any developments. And Stacy has work again. She really wants to help, though. But I do not think this moment is her calling, you know?”

“I understand.” Schneep took a deep breath and stood up. “Nine o’clock at the park. I will see you there. We will finish this.”

“We will finish this,” Rama agreed. “See you then.” And they hung up.

Schneep lowered the phone. His hands were shaking. But he would do this. He would go get Jackie back.

#jacksepticeye #jacksepticeye fanfiction #jacksepticegos #septic egos #septic egos au #jacksepticeye au #jameson jackson #marvin the magnificent #dr schneeplestein #brigid writes fanfiction #septicswitchau

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theflyingfeeling · 1 year

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☀️ "it's always sunny in Stockholm" ☀️

aka a concert report from Fryshuset Klubben, Stockholm, 1.3.2023

Travelling to our final destination (Stockholm city centre) did not go without hassle (wrong gate at the airport, delays with the commuter train to the city centre, trouble figuring out the venue etc., BC would've been proud!) but everything did work out eventually and we were in good spirits! 🥰

Speaking of the venue, I think none of us would've foreseen that listening to that one song in 2021 would lead us to hang out in the backyard of some random school in Stockholm, but that's where we were, and had good laughs there too :') <3

The venue was small intimate and not full, which to us in the audience was great (it wasn't cramped nor too hot), although for BC's sake I would've hoped there would've been a little bigger turn-up (especially considering at least half of the audience were Finnish fans 😂). They didn't seem to mind though; the show was as 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 as their shows always are

But before I talk about the show, I must once more advertise the support act! Not gonna lie, I had a minor heart attack when hours before the gig, BC posted an IG story starting with the words "due to an illness...", because them cancelling the gig would've been just the cherry on the top of the day we had had already, but it thankfully was Eyes Wide Open that had had to cancel at last minute. A band called Those Without was asked to fill in and boy am I thankful for the universe for this!! 😭🙏 They were so damn good!! I remember listening to their first song and going "huh! this ain't that bad actually" and wondering if it's just that one song, but no, all the other ones they played were great as well, which made me so happy 💖 It was a little funny when the band came on though; they just walked to the stage very unceremoniously and we weren't quite sure whether they were still doing the preperations until they started playing 😂 The singer was cute af, the bassist sang a bit, they were so chill and SO GRATEFUL to be there and just kept thanking BC for this opportunity and us the audience for being so nice to them, and all I wanted to scream was "no, thank YOU!!" because they really made my little punk pop/rock heart burst with love 🥺 If you're into early Mayday Parade / The Maine / Yellowcard -esque stuff, definitely check them out!

Blind Channel was Blind Channel, meaning they were wonderful amazing brilliant and it was great seeing them again 💞 We were ~4th row, there were a few tall people directly in front of us but at least I ended up having a great view to the stage in the end. The stage was high enough and close enough to the audience for me to be able to see their tattoos in detail and I remember admiring Joel's heart tattoo and Olli's three swords (god bless the inventor of sleeveless shirts eh? 🥵)

Random moments I remember include Olli falling asleep/zoning out during Autopsy (he didn't look up at the "HEY!!" part, or maybe he just forgot 😂 (I have video proof lol)) and Joel doing the tiniest snake dance during Snake (it looked like he wasn't going to do it, but then he couldn't help himself, I hope someone captured this 🥺🙏) + the moments in the videos I've posted

They're all so gorgeous but Olli 😩😩😩😩😩 he's so fucking beautiful I have a scheduled meltdown about it on a normal day, but during the show it's just 💦💦💦💦💦💦 all the time 💀 he trousers he was wearing were so tight cool and the sleeveless shirt had me by the pussy swooning 🫠

Flatline is awesome live, including the silly dance, even if in the audience you can't do it as "big" as you're supposed to. No bruise on my left tiddy though, I guess it takes more than one concert for one to appear, so BC should maybe consider wearing some padding on their chests for that 😆👀

After the gig we had an "after party" in a rock bar somewhere in Stockholm (not sure which district). I think here it's relevant to mention that in the queue there was this nice Swedish metal dude standing behind us and probably unwillingly listening to us as we were speaking a merry mix of English and Finnish, and eventually he started chatting with us and ended up joining us inside the venue and even showing us the way to one of his favourite bars when we asked for recs and he also came in for a few drinks with us despite having work the next day (he had also been at the venue the day before to see Sleeping With Sirens and was still wearing the same makeup from that gig 😂👌)

At the same bar there was also Henrik from Amaranthe (who none of us would've recognized if the Swedish metal dude hadn't started fangirling about him 😂)

All in all I had such a fun time on this 24-hour trip and I'm so happy I decided to go. Some of you know how stressed out I was about it; I'm so thankful to anyone who had to listen to me rant my heart out about it. I'm happy to tell you that the experience I had was totally worth it <3

Thank you so incerdibly much to all you guys who were with me at any point of this trip, it wouldn't have been the same without you (you all know who you are <3). Sorry if I was obnoxious or laughed too loudly, but I had such a shit weekend behind me and I was just so happy to get to see my favourite band and to hang out with all of you lovely people that I couldn't contain my excitement. Being there really meant so much to me, because this band and the community we have built around it truly is one of the few lights at the end of the never-ending tunnel I often get lost in. I know this sounds silly and I'm probably being selfish but it made me so sad when BC said they won't be doing that many shows in Finland this summer. Yes, I completely understand that they're aiming for an international career and I'm fully supporting their plans to take over the world (I'm not one of those Finnish fans), and yes, I am aware that as a Finnish fan I'm immensely priviledged as it is and that I've had many more opportunities to see them than most fans living elsewhere have had. This may sound pathetic (or at least I feel pathetic about it), but I really don't have much else going on for me other than BC and everything related to it (nothing that gives me as much serotonin, that is), and if I don't get to see them next summer... I don't know what I'll do. Summers are a bit difficult for me for a variety of reasons, and last summer with all the BC shows was such a blessing, a wonderful distraction from my sad life and the fact that I'm nowhere near where I want to be, and I'm not sure if I can handle another lonely, grey summer and feeling like a failure every waking moment after having experienced all the fun last summer 💔

...so I guess I'm going on a road-trip around Europe next summer 🤔 Who's with me? 😌

#blind channel #the quote in the title © thisisntaparty 💛😌#please keep your eyes on niko on that video 😘#gifs coming up later maybe?#sorry not sorry for adding concert videos to my emotinal ramblings lol this is how i roll #ok to reblog though! 💗#gig reports by theflyingfeeling #my concert

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