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armpirate · 1 year

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UNDER YOUR SKIN || JJK || Ch. 1

Pairings: tattoist!jk x fem!reader

Genre: smut, angst, friends to lovers, tattoo au, virgin reader.

Summary: You were awful on anything related to flirting, guys and sex. He was the perfect ladies man. You wanted to get rid of your virginity. And he was there to help you with everything you needed. You didn't have the best start, but that didn't mean you wouldn't have the best of the endings.

Previous || Next

MASTERLIST

My eyes have been exploring the place ever since I arrived, still looking for someone to hit on and put to practice everything I learned this evening before I pulled some strength and finally got here.

I've walked past this pub way too many times. Always filled with fancy people sharing interesting conversations while drinking a glass of the most expensive combination of alcohol, and low jazz music playing in the background to set the mood. So when one of the tips said "Go to one comfortable place, and put all the skills i taught you to test" the place I had to choose was pretty clear for me.

Although it's been one hour and a half -or three Cosmopolitans-, I'm still in the exact same spot. And I'm doing the exact same thing since I got here. I'm supposed to be reaching out to different people, hit here and there, and try to get a phone number for once. But I haven't found the guts to do it. For some reason, all dudes in here seem so... inaccessible? Could be it's not exactly them, but the process of reaching out to them right now seems so intimidating, I just can't find myself doing it.

Almost all of them are the same, anyway. Expensive shirts, pleated beige pants and loafers -although maybe I saw one of them wearing a brilliant pair of derby shoes. It's no help. I'm not attracted to either of them and, even if I were, I'm sure we'd have nothing to talk about. Maybe I should've gone to the pub in the other side of the street, where they serve you the best beer while blowing your ears with the hardest metal.

And actually, I'm just five minutes away from leaving and head to that place. Even if I don't end up getting someone's attention, I'll still enjoy the rest of the night by jamming to some music -not caring of how I look or how loud I seem.

This just isn't my place. Or so I thought.

My eyes feel captured by a pair of pitch black eyes staring at me from the distance. And one quick look at him makes me wonder how the hell I didn't see him before, among all these people? He's the only one standing out with that bad boy aura.

When he gets caught looking, he doesn't look away. He just doesn't care. So I decide I won't care either, before I look at him from head to toe. He is carelessly resting his full sleeve tattooed arm over the counter, his fingers holding his glass filled with liquid. His other hand is resting inside the front pocket of his black cargo pants, that fit into his legs way too fine. My eyes keep going back up through his black t-shirt and silver chains, hanging around his neck. The perfect fit.

He's been following the move of my eyes over his body with his doe eyes, but he's far from bothered by it. Actually, the way he looks at me and throws a sided smile kinda convinces me he likes to have my attention right now.

But he still doesn't move from that place, and the heavy environment growing where I'm sitting right now forces me to look away. It almost felt like I needed a short break, to pull myself together, before I decide what's the next move to make.

What did the video say?

"Different words can make a sentence" Yeah. No shit, Sherlock. No, it wasn't that. Something along the lines "Let the other person know you're interested, but don't make it seem like you're too desperate". No, that was later in the video, for sure. I'm missing the part where the dude gave tips to get up and head to the person you want to flirt with.

God, I can't even remember. My mind seems to only be able to think about that vicious smile, and that lip ring just making it even more tempting to head where he is and play with it shamelessly.

Focus, Y/N.

I shake my head again, giving a sip to my drink before I turn to that hot stranger... Ha, who's now busy talking to a breathtaking brunette. The girl twirls her hair on her finger, tilting her head and swaying her hips. She's doing exactly what I should've done the moment we kept the eye contact for so long.

Kudos to her confidence, that encouraged her to go and talk to the only interesting man in the whole pub. Although, if I had her body, I'd probably have that vast amount of confidence as well. No, actually not.

I'm so immersed in my own thoughts, so deep in my mind and my own rant, I'm not aware my eyes are still on the couple flirting on the counter. And when I do realize, it's way too late. His eyes catch mine in the middle of his conversation, he's speaking to her, but looking at me with a malicious smile.

I move my eyes away from them way too late. And probably he thinks I'm a weirdo. Or maybe he doesn't mind me at all, which is the most possible since he already has something else to drive his attention to.

I give my drink a long last sip before taking the glass and heading to the middle of the counter, just to leave the empty glass there. Time to go back home, and feel sorry for myself another night.

—Have a good night —the bartender smiles when he notices me.

—You too —I give her a smile.

The relaxing jazz music from the pub is replaced by honks and loud crowds from the street. Well, welcome back to New York City, the city that never sleeps and that will never let you catch a break. Unless you need a cab to drive you back home when you most need it. In that case, take the longest break and brace patience.

I cross my arms over my chest, trying to warm myself a bit when my body finally realizes I'm in the middle of the street, when it's 15 degrees, and I'm only wearing a thin short sleeved blouse and a pair of jeans. I should've known better. When I arrived, it was still hot, and what I'm wearing was still appropriate for the weather. Now? Now it's the best outfit to kill yourself of hypothermia.

I should've stayed in tonight. Fuck that video. Fuck the creator. And fuck me for thinking it would work, when the previous sixteen videos made no change whenever I tried to open up and break my comfort zone. Fuck my shyness and fuck that cab that's prolonging this shitty night.

My mental rambling gets interrupted by a voice on my back.

—Do you need a ride?

#fanfic #ff #jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkookxreader #jk #bts #wattpad #kookie #smut #jungkook smut #tattoistjk #tattooau #armpirate

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sso-maev · 4 months

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Story quest thoughts!!!

Biggest impression I got from the quest is that the team has a direction for where they want to take the story. Which like finally. The quests being called “beginning of the end” really signifies to me that they’re not gonna keep stalling with the story anymore. The stakes are going up and it really feels like we’re nearing the end of the main story quests, at least the story we’ve been following.

Speaking of stakes, omg we actually bombed the DC headquarters. Went over this in a previous post but like. Sso has NEVER made a previously permanent area inaccessible. Im gonna miss the platform and emo crust-Justin (Gone but not forgotten❤️) but honestly? This was such a great way to make the scale of the battle so much larger. Also it does make sense to me that the HQ never actually drilled for oil. Dark core has other establishment that I’m sure were actually doing legit business, but since all the workers on the oil rig are robots anyway and it’s the location of the portal, it makes sense that they reserve the HQ for just the magic shenanigans.

Anne never hesitating to use her powers in the most dangerous way possible will never cease to be funny to me. Go queen commit whatever atrocities you need to. But I honestly think everyone was pretty well written in terms of dialogue. Anne takes a major risk with her powers, and it results in her getting the revenge she wanted. Alex isn’t only used as an engine for comedy, and I really like the bit where she expresses remorse for leaving us to face the dark riders on our own. Linda gets a lot more screentime than I expected, and she really reminds me of her book counterpart in these quests. The DR have nearly killed her so many times and she’s just not afraid of them at this point. She has this confident assertiveness to her that we don’t really see as much when she’s talking to friends, outside of short quips. Lisa is the only one who didn’t get that much through these quests, but I’ve kind of gotten used to that at this point. I can project my headcannons onto her regardless

Surprisingly I was also really fond of the soul horses this time! Concorde and Tincan had some really nice ominous foreshadowing to their dialogue (Runestones hasnt been used since WHAT dark times Tincan???????) and both Meteor and Starshine had some fun dialogue

The DR are always just so great. You don’t understand I love Jessica more than anything in this world. Her telling Katja to “do the thing” and it’s just them riding over an already iced river is absolutely wonderful. And oh my god the ENDING. Its so cinematiccccc. Mr sands is back after what. 7 years?? Insane. The three hits on the tree, the glowing red runes of the hammer, Sabines full name of general Malumi, Erissa sommersaulting out of the portal LIKE. The questline was short but it was so packed with new story developments. The soul riders think theyve won while the dark riders welcome their fourth general come onnn.

So Darko is dead right? Like if they were gonna bring him back they would at this point. I do wish they found a way to integrate him here, and if not that introduce him earlier in the game. I don’t really care that much about him as a character, but him being introduced as relevant, killing Elizabeth and then never being talked about again isn’t really the conclusion I want.

But overall I really liked the quests. Everyone felt in character, we got really impactful cutscenes, and the story is progressing in a way thats both natural and really exciting. I can’t wait to see whats gonna happen now that the HQ is gone and the dark riders are complete.

#sso #star stable online #star stable

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c1tyhaunts · 1 month

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NOWING YOUR PARTNER WELL CAN POTENTIALLY MAKE WRITING TOGETHER A LOT EASIER.

NAME : xera.

PRONOUNS : she / her / they / them

PREFERENCE OF COMMUNICATION : 100% prefer discord over Tumblr IM - it's the best way to get in touch with me, and sometimes I love building servers with some of my partners to build dynamics if we have multiple muses - that stuff is a lot of fun and I adore the archiving aspect of it.

NAME OF MUSE(S) : the current roster (8) includes: terrah sparkz, lilah lyons, avian esparza, elvira "ivy" d'angelo, nache "che" ferraro, richard "ricky/jacket" fritz*, emmanuel "manny" calavera*, & ayati gadhavi* (* - denotes a canon character i stole from some obscure game, including: hotline miami (ricky/jacket), grim fandango (manny), and return of the obra dinn (ayati)

EXPERIENCE / HOW LONG ( MONTHS / YEARS? ) : god i'm pretty sure since 2012 i've been RPing - from text RP via cell phones, to DeviantArt, to Forums, to Tumblr/Discord; I've been in the game for a minute.

BEST EXPERIENCE : ohhhhh man, there's so many. and although some feelings have swayed throughout the years, I definitely think the connections I've made through the RP scene are the best part of it. I've genuinely made long time friends through this hobby - people who i talk to on the daily about their lives, people who i've gone to visit personally and hang out with. at the end of the day, the connections made are the biggest and best thing i can get from a hobby. to build a community with great people around me.

RP PET PEEVES / DEALBREAKERS : to list a few specific ones (none are directly targeted, but I felt are relevant to me)

Deal Breaker: any weird hatred/blatant misogyny for fem/feminine ocs in the RPC. it's 2024 and i STILL be seeing people hate women or fem ocs so openly? why does this keep happening??? actually, scratch that - just general OC scrutiny drives me wild. most of y'all do know your favorite canon character is a OC who had higher production value, right? so why think most canons are better than ocs when we're all on the same playing field, ya know??

Pet Peeve: style over substance - i appreciate most aesthetics *motions to own blog* but i also have eyes that i need to read or see. I feel like i miss out on a lot of good blogs because i can't read their formatting on their blog or carrd and it's inaccessible :(

Small Pet Peeve: "I just go with the flow" - when I hear this, I usually see most plotting convos go dead in a matter of messages. lbr everybody, we all have dynamics or specific characters that catch our eyes or that we like. I'm so open about shipping and dynamics like, let's throw out something specific and see where that goes. THEN we can "go with the flow" but we can't flow without direction.

MUSE PREFERENCES FLUFF, ANGST OR SMUT : Yes.

PLOTS OR MEMES : plotting for me personally - only because I work a full time job outside of tumblr, and i typically won't have time to always write up a reply to a meme or a thread. I adore plotting and world building with my partners especially via discord, so I'd highly prefer that so then it's easier (and motivates me!) to reply to our threads in the process.

LONG OR SHORT REPLIES : I unfortunately can't do short replies for the life of me - like some people can do one liners so well, but I need to set the scene & actions. So, usually medium to longer replies.

BEST TIME TO WRITE : i try to reply to threads over the weekends (Friday, Saturday, Sundays) cause that's usually the times I have availability. On weekdays, I'd do memes or headcanons to keep activity up. My muse can be fickle, and although i love to write, I also love to write quality content for my partners so it will take me time.

ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S) : each of my muses have a little aspect of me in them (which is unavoidable if i have the passion to write them) but none of them are me 100%. GOD, I hope none them are like me or I'm like them. some of these people are a fuckin mess.

TAGGED BY : stole it from bestie @abysswarden TAGGING : YOU!

#▶⌜dead air :: ooc⌟

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dreamsclock · 1 year

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No Nuke Au’s anthem is “In Our Bedroom After the War” by Jackie Lee

this got so long and out of hand but i fucking LOVE this song and this au so i had to ramble about how perfect the lyrics are. under cut for length!!! (As usual disclaimer that this is only MY version of the au. there are loads of other ways it relates :D)

Wake up, say good morning to that sleepy person lying next to you. If there's no one there, then there's no one there, but at least the war is over.

Literally the beginning of the No Nuke canon divergence. In my version, the nuke happens but only injures Dream and Punz, and Tommy drags Dream back to his house where he wakes up injured, disorientated, and alone. He'd grown used to waking up with Punz nearby, but things are different now. The war is... if not over, then it's changed. He doesn't have to fight for a goal he can't bring himself to understand. Tommy has his back - Dream tries to take relief in this, but can't help but feel so lonely.

It's us, yes, we're back again, here to see you through 'til the day's end. And if the night comes, and the night will come, well at least the war is over.

Tommy and Dream acclimatizing to their new lives. The old status-quo has been completely uprooted, and it's hard to scramble for a sense of normalcy with (for Tommy) your worst enemy and (for Dream) someone you've convinced yourself is a stupid kid who can be played like a pawn. They fight, they argue, they shout about the past and don't talk about the future, but despite this, they're... together. They have the same goal, and, unable to contact anyone else, they have to rely on each other. No matter what happens.

Lift you head and look out the window. Stay that way for the rest of the day and watch the time go.

Works for both of them, honestly. Works for anyone central in this AU; Dream, Tommy, Punz. All of them have lost something. All of them are fighting towards something. Punz reminisces on what he and Dream had, while Tommy misses his friends, his family. Wilbur is gone, Techno is inaccessible in the Syndicate since the Egg has taken over after the Nuke. Tubbo is somewhere - Tommy doesn't know where. And Dream's whole ideology and life has been reshaped around the nuke, and he has no idea how things ended up like this. He finds himself pressed against the one grimy window of Tommy's house, staring out at the wreck of the server, wondering where everything went wrong. He doesn't ever really find his answer.

Listen, the birds sing. Listen, the bells ring.

Despite everything they've lost, though, Dream and Tommy don't lose hope!!! Tommy's optimism rubs off on Dream, and Dream's sheer stubbornness rubs off on Tommy. They remind each other that the server can be fixed. It can be.

All the living are dead, and the dead are all living. The war is over, and we are beginning.

Wilbur is gone, living his life somewhere new. Tommy isn't certain he's not dead. Wilbur is gone, Schlatt is gone, Ranboo is gone, and as time passes, most characters - Dream, Tommy, Punz, Tubbo, Quackity, Bad, etc - begin to feel like they might be dead themselves. It's hard to feel like they're alive when this is their reality - but, all of them remind themselves, the war is over. They're doing cleanup now. This is them, in their own, sometimes wrong ways: cleaning up the server, trying to fix things. Fix everything. For Bad and Punz, that's with the Egg. For Tubbo and Quackity, it's about making sure their respective groups of Snowchester and Las Nevadas thrive amongst the hellscape of the server. For Dream and Tommy, it's trying to restore the server back to the way it used to be. Because all of them love the server - they don't want it gone. They don't.

We won, or we think we did. When you went away, you were just a kid. And if you lost it all, and you've lost it, well, we'll still be there, when your war is over.

This again could apply to anyone. They were just kids when this started - Tommy was fifteen, Dream and Punz barely nineteen, twenty. And it links to Dream's eventual breakdown while living / working with Tommy, that has been building up since the initial nuke disaster. He's lost everything, it feels like, everything he's gone through - the prison, the wars, the destruction, the plan, everything - has been for nothing. He mourns the person he was, is terrified of the person he has become. He doesn't see a way for this to end without his death, but he's realized that, for the first time in a long, long time, he wants to live. He wants to be happy again.

Lift your head and look out the window. Stay that way for the rest of the day and watch the time go. Listen, the birds sing.

Gradually, things get desperate in Tommy's house. Supplies are running out, tensions are fraught, they can barely go scouting anymore because of the Egg and how much it's spread over the whole shelter. Time is passing by quickly, and they need a solution. They need one fast. Punz loiters outside, and Dream refuses to give into him. And then-

Listen, the bells ring. All the living are dead, and the dead are all living. The war is over and we are beginning-

They hear a bell. A familiar one. They've run from Tommy's house and they're injured, exhausted, muddy, but the Syndicate, heavily fortified and defended, comes into view, and Techno is ringing a bell as the gates open for them. They're not dead! And they're welcoming them in!! For the first time in a long time, Tommy and Dream are hopeful. They might just be able to do this.

Here it comes, here comes the first day...

If this was an animatic, there would be a shot of all the main factions / characters preparing for the final fight, which happens again at the prison. This time, there's a sense of hope, almost. They're going to fix this, or they're going to die trying.

(And they do fix it. And they don't die. And the sun rises pale and weak the next morning, and Tommy, Dream, and Punz watch it together.)

(The first day of rebuilding the server is beautiful, fragile. But it's the first day of many, and they're going to be okay.)

#> au: no nuke finale #dreblr

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riafunnel · 11 months

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On Fandom

"So you know how sometimes a piece of media stops being just a movie or just a series or just a whatever and becomes, like, a legitimately important part of your life?"

-arisha on LJ

For me, that was Escaflowne.

When you consume a piece of media at the perfect time in your life, it just really sticks to you and becomes more than just that thing. It becomes a marker for who you were at the time, no matter how cringey. And if the work is really, really good, it'll be a joy to revisit years later when you've grown up and can look at it with different eyes. I have other reasons for revisiting it, I suppose, and a lot of them have to do with fully accepting my younger self.

I was that girl when I was a grade school kid, fully obsessed, the way only a fangirl could be. I had posters in my room, listened to all the OSTs, talked about how much I hated Allen (lol), made a Fanel household in The Sims, tried out for track, and daydreamed about getting isekai'd myself.

The media landscape was so different back then, a lot of media was just very inaccessible and I had to be resourceful. The depth of research and rabbit-holes I got into - I taught myself katakana, read up on Atlantis and tarot cards, read One Thousand and One Nights, the Van Allen radiation belt (lol), and all the fanfiction I encountered on Geocities websites and FFN. I tracked down all the other works of the voice actors, both English and Japanese, and watched those.

I had my group of friends who were also fangirls, and we all hung out together and talked about our anime crushes and wrote fanfiction together. We definitely got weird looks, but that's okay, on a certain level we did know we were into weird things.

Towards the end of grade school I distinctly remember feeling ashamed of my weeby behavior and took active measures to tamp it down, 'grow up' a little, and make more friends outside of my anime bubble. It worked and I hung out with other crowds.

I would still engage in the fandom intermittently, but by then my group of friends had all gone our separate ways. I ended up going to a different high school than my grade school friends, and we all gradually stopped being anime fangirls. We developed different interests, discovered boys, etc.

I have bittersweet feelings about that time in my life, consciously suppressing my love for all anime (not just Escaflowne) because I was embarrassed. But at the same time, I was busy with a demanding school schedule and other major life events. Looking back, I wish I didn't shame myself for giving up on my 'childish interests'. I wish I engaged more with the fandom and sought out the corners of the internet where my fellow fans gathered. I recently discovered that there was an Escaflowne forum in the mid-2000s that I completely missed, as the whole site is defunct now.

I also didn't think to look on Tumblr, because I was A Cool Girl(TM) and joined reddit in 2010 instead. I feel like I missed out on a lot, not just because of Life Events but also because of my embarrassment at being a fangirl.

Over the years I'd still listen to the score, rewatch every few years or so. I convinced one of my best buddies to rewatch it with me during the pandemic and he was so impressed the animation, the story, the direction, with how well it holds up. It really reaffirmed by love for the show.

I guess I was mostly embarrassed of my antics when I was younger, but that was just me expressing my love for a piece of media that I really like. What's so strange about that? Christopher Lee used to read LOTR every damn year, there are a million adaptations of The Iliad, and a bajillion more covers of The Beatles' Yesterday. Good art is just timeless, you know?

So yes, this blog is about Escaflowne but also more than that. I’m really happy that I found media that I obsessed over back then and that it still has a bunch of fans like me all over the world.

Nowadays I'm unlearning that shame, I am fully accepting my younger self's cringe, and I owe it to her to engage in fandom. :)

#escaflowne #fandom #fangirl #embrace the cringe #i owe my younger self a hug #vision of escaflowne #tenkuu no escaflowne #i was so in love with van okay #personal #fangirl thoughts #fangirl things #fandom things #fandom thoughts

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thinfatfit · 1 year

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omg no i pretty much cut myself off from family too but when I was 23, i can't imagine bring an orphan obvious there must be so much pain there and it's very different. But I think even tiny things like I hung out with a friend and her mum bought her lunch. or like family giving leftovers. Having someone to drjve you somewhere. Being alone somewhere late at night and not having a 'last resort' for someone to call. Every doctors office asks for an emergency contact and I put down a friend I have i asked her and she let me luckily. But it still feels very tentative. Also having ppl who've known u since birth and feeling safe abd stable with them and having them know your quirks and yoru personality. Having little things in common and missing those moments together. Jesus like the stability of a job or having choices and options even in a small way. even having family connections that can help you even if its just a friend of a friend knowing someone at a place that's hiring. Or having someone older and experienced who will vouch for you. Having ppl who can help with moving who can even things like. Giving you old furniture or random stuff if ur like 'Damn I don't have x thibg.'and theyre likd 'Oh we have an old... sewing machibe/some old plates/an old wardrobe they can give you. Like... or even not having room for smth and veing able to leave it with them. Like u gotta be able to take care of everything you own. And not having anyone or anything to fall back on. It's terrifying. Even stuff like family history and information bc u wanna know what u were like as a kid. Or to get a diagnosis. Or some kids book or old thing u wanna remember. And u can't just go ask them. All of that memory and information is just. Gone or inaccessible to you. And it's really lonely. ❤❤❤

Yes I 100% with every single thing you said yes yes yes and we both know there are a million other things too. One thing I thought of reading this is not being able to have someone to co-sign a loan with you or sign as your guarantor if you want to rent an apartment and you don’t earn whatever they’re random minimum is (even though you earn enough to more than pay rent).

I’m really sorry you’re experiencing this. It sucks and it is super lonely agreed. And just like….. no one understands. And yes get triggered when my friends say or I see small things like they have food at their house from their mom. Also ya just constantly have to justify and explain why life is so hard without a family. Also people who have families but are like I’m pretty self sufficient and brag about how independent they are and I’m like you get all these perks you don’t realize. Lol one time this girl was saying that if her kids are eighteen when she dies she won’t leave them any money even if she has it because she was self sufficient at that age (she wasn’t lol). I hate all those people who are like you don’t need a family past 18 and I’m like tell me you have a family without telling me you have a family.

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moved-to-void-kissed · 2 years

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💬 hi im in ur inbox again feel free to ignore this one bc its longer than what the original prompt talked abt but .. would love to hear any ideas for like. if adri & luna had a "hey this is what u missed!" convo in the celebi quest .. was going to add taka in there as the timetravel partner bc im biased but elias being there also sounds funny

The fact that you took the time to send all these asks means a lot to me, friend. Thank you very much. I will not ignore this.

I will give a disclaimer that, since Adri doesn’t actually do the Celebi quest in our version of events, I hadn’t really had any ideas about this concept before you sent the ask. I had sort of envisioned lines from Adri as a part of the quest, since she can say about “don’t worry I stepped in as shadow champion while you were gone and before shelly became the new champion! after luna became an elite four member I took up a position as ghost-type gym leader and I take my battles in iolia valley”. However, this is something a bit different.

(source: this post by queenieboo22)

send me 💬 and a character and I’ll give you a line my self-insert would say if in a canon interaction with them - this is a full default Anna Route situation, meaning Elias is the other time traveller and it’s also in tier 3 instead of post-Tao Trio where you moved it to.

If you just want the one line: “I’m just.. so sorry that I left you all alone!”

And if you’d like the whole (dialogue-only) conversation: it’s under the readmore.

Luna: “My love.. It really is you! You’re still exactly as I remember you.. Oh, I cannot express how happy I am to see you again!”

Adriana: “I know it hasn’t been as long for me, but I am so glad to see you as well, Luna! How have you fared? Is everything alright?”

Luna: “Yes, with all things considered, I like to think I've done quite well for myself. I'm one of the Elite Four now, you see!”

Adriana: "Oh! That's amazing, Luna, congratulations! You're truly deserving of the title."

Luna: "Hehe, thank you kindly! I have been working closely with the Champion to help her keep a better record of this region's history, as well as to preserve what aspects of its old culture would be remiss to lose entirely. It would have been lovely to have you here to see our progress, I must admit."

Adriana: “I am so sorry.. If not for the Relic Stone in our original time being so inaccessible, we wouldn’t have had to travel through time like we did..”

Luna: “Ah, don’t worry too much; when the Champion figured out the answer, it brought us all much solace. Though it was still a miserable affair for myself, and others too, to begin with. Incidentally, where is.. the man who travelled through time with you..?”

Adriana: “As far as I’m aware, Elias is still.. Ah, yes. Up on the stairs over there, still miserably losing in a shouting match with Radomus.”

Luna: “Hah! I daresay Father shall trounce him in all arguments he could muster. ..I cannot say I was sad to be free of him. Though with the young master having previously been lost to us as well.. nothing remained of that time to me anymore. And I must admit, it was not entirely a miserable childhood when I look back on the time I spent with him..”

Adriana: “You’re.. referring to Taka?”

Luna: “Yes. I'm afraid that, even as we worked to deal with the anomalies from the New World, the only person we found from before was that young man who fell into the Void alongside us both; Cain, I believe."

Adriana: "Oh, I see.. Well, I'm glad Cain was brought back, at least. But I wish the same was true for Taka somehow, as well, even considering his fate. I know that you and him had grown up together, after all.."

Luna: "I know that I'm blessed to be part of such a lovely family, but.. With you gone, even once we realised you would return someday, it still wasn't easy. Nobody was surprised when I took up the training of Ghost-types once I joined the Elite Four, after all."

Adriana: "They are your secondary type specialty?"

Luna: "Of course! Not only do they fare quite well on my battlefield of choice, so it was a logical choice from that perspective as the final Trainer before the Champion, but.. I felt it was only natural to honour you in any way I could."

Adriana: "That's.. Luna, I'm not sure I know what to say.."

Luna: "My love.. Why are you crying?"

Adriana: “I’m just.. so sorry that I left you all alone! And- the fact that you did something like that for my sake.. You really didn't have to do anything like that at all!”

Luna: "Oh, there's no need for you to apologise! It is what I wanted. Please, come here; it's alright, I promise.."

Adriana: "Ah- Thank you.. If you're sure, then, thank you. To be entirely honest, the whole concept of being ten years in the future is still.. a little bit overwhelming to me. Seeing everyone and how they have grown older.. It's lovely, but it takes a lot out of me."

Luna: "I can only imagine how surreal this must be for you. But, even so, we hoped - and later, knew - that you would return someday. Even though you most likely aren't able to stay here with us as we are now, I have faith that everyone who's here at the moment will still be here once you reach this point yourself. In fact, I believe that with you still in our lives for these past ten years, as the shining shadow that you are and always have been.. It's safe to say that things will turn out even better than they already are for us now."

Adriana: "Hehe.. I must admit, I would like that. I want to be there for you, and for all of my friends here. Thank you, Luna.."

Luna: “It is never a problem! So please, do not worry, my love. When Celebi takes you back to the time you originally came here from, and ten years pass for us both.. I know that I will be standing here alongside you still.”

#a call from the void #selfship #selfshipping #heart of the void #love: dark dreamer (luna)#selfship: void‑kissed (luna/adriana)#self‑insert: soul‑touched (adriana)#this was much more sad when I was writing it last night but then I went back and actually read all the post-timeskip dialogue #so I toned down the melancholy just a tiiiiny bit #remembering how to push elias out of the picture by having this come directly after talking to noel also helped #It’s sort of a pain that having Elias as the other time traveller is only the case if Taka is dead at the time #because I really would have wanted Taka to be there for Luna during the timeskip here #especially since Ace can’t be back yet by this point either and I don’t remember Luna having a specific connection to anyone other than tho #the* two of them based on what I recall of her nightclub dialogue. plus second timeline just barely doesn't get to postgame at all #so.. that's why this is a full default anna route #anyway that's rambling I relegated to the tags after originally throwing it into the main body of the post #out of the inbox #selfship asks #clara tag!#ask to tag #crumbs this took a while to actually finish off so i hope it's okay

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tehuti88-art · 2 months

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3/15/24: Join me in an attempt to revisit a childhood world I've put away for decades, even longer than the Trench Rats (which I'll still be developing, don't worry). I'm not sure how far, if at all, I'll get with it, but recent events have me longing to share.

Firstly, the Toyhou.se folder that helps set the scene, I'll link but will copy the info here as well:

"The Animals" was a favored childhood "storyline" of mine. Whereas other children played with their friends, I was lonely and isolated outside of school, and so spent much of my time playing with stuffed toy animals, and little toy plastic animals. The former group is informally known as the Bed Toys; the latter are known simply as The Animals.

The Animals were very loosely based on/inspired by The Smurfs, which I watched religiously. The animal characters were miniature creatures who lived in the Animal Village deep in the forest (Mrs. Cow lived in a tree toy of mine, the Kenner Tree Tots Family Treehouse), and were always being threatened for some unknown reason by Bad Guy and his minions, Merganser, Black Rabbit, and a woman whose name I no longer recall (I call her simply "Woman" for now). (Fun fact, I only just now remembered Black Rabbit, who was a ripoff of January Q. Irontail from Here Comes Peter Cottontail.) Over time, probably well after I'd stopped playing with the toys, I attempted coming up with an explantion for their existence, and concluded that they were some sort of friendly brownies (small household beings from Scottish folklore, though my Animals weren't specifically Scottish).

My play with The Animals ended some time after I lost Turtle, one of the main characters, for the final time (he had a habit of going missing yet showing up again). Multiple cleanings of my messy room never resulted in me finding him. For a long time, for some odd reason, I had an intuition that he'd ended up in our basement, in a specific area directly under my room, where an unused kiddie pool full of my junk long ago was. Over the years the basement which I used to play in flooded repeatedly, had a sewer leak, was taken over by spiders and pests (a frog lived down there for years), and then my dad did his woodwork down there so sawdust coated everything. When he recently died, I crept down to the basement for my first look at it in years. It wasn't as bad as I'd suspected, but was still in poor shape. The area with the kiddie pool was now full of wood and junk and inaccessible. Relatives arrived to clear everything out. I hoped they would retrieve a few relics of toys and belongings of mine that my dad stored improperly down there years ago, some of which I'd rescued but some of which were lost, yet there was almost nothing left to be found. In an old preserves room/root cellar I'd never explored before (and had recurring dreams that it led into hidden tunnels, crypts, or even to an outdoors land), I did find one thing: the remaining part of the old Kenner Tree Tots Family Treehouse.

I got my first look at the cleared-out basement. It had never been that empty in my memory (over forty years). The entire area beneath my room was now cleaned out. I peered into the far corner where my imagination had repeatedly told me Turtle would be found. Alas, he was not there. He's still gone. Two interesting details emerged, however. Firstly that the heating vent to my room had come loose. Secondly that there were spaces visible around a cinderblock in the wall directly under the corner of my room; I could see daylight through them.

What if Turtle fell down my heating vent long ago, and did indeed end up in the basement corner below my room, like my imagination kept telling me?

What if he escaped through the cracks around the cinderblock?

What if he's still out there...?

Not long before my dad's death, I started digging into my genealogy. I'm largely German through my dad's side so far, though other branches are sadly lost for now. I traced my surname back through the Pennsylvania Dutch to 1500s Hessen. With the clearing-out of the basement, and learning at last that Turtle is not down there, The Animals popped back into my head. I'd bought replicas of these toys online previously and found that my set was incomplete or else others had been lost over time. I'm feeling a nostalgic urge to resurrect the childhood story that brought me so much comfort in my loneliness long ago. While I do have Scottish ancestry through my mother (I found my gateway ancestor through the Dutch and Scottish), maybe The Animals are not actually brownies. Maybe they're German household spirits known as kobolds. And maybe their "forest village" isn't quite in the forest at all, just that the toy treehouse convinced them it was. Maybe the treehouse is evocative of something else much older and more mystical. Maybe The Animals' existence isn't quite what they always thought it was. Maybe Turtle didn't go missing, maybe he went in search of the truth...?

I'm not sure of all the details yet but here are my budding efforts at taking another peek at this childhood story almost lost to time. Everything is very rough, tentative, and open to change.

I miss my dad.

I had a little spare time to doodle. Here is Kitten, the main character alongside Turtle. Kitten was a good toy, never got lost. Was always left behind when Turtle went missing. He's probably still somewhere around (I collected most of my little toy animals in a bin and stashed them away, I think, maybe upstairs, which needs work like the basement...I fear lots of pest damage). Still loyally awaiting his best friend's return. I'll share some more info about him on Toyhou.se soon. As I drew him from memory (I'd intended to reference duplicates of the toys I've since purchased), some details are subject to change, and it's just a rough sketch for now as this whole world is still quite fluid.

I drew also Turtle. He'll be next in his own entry. There are others to come, should I get to them. I'm unsure yet.

Let's see where this may go.

[Rough Kitten Sketch 2024 [‎Friday, ‎March ‎15, ‎2024, ‏‎5:01:15 PM]]

#artists on tumblr #kleki #original characters

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cuddlesslut · 3 years

Text

Part One :Home

Atsumu x Reader(fem)

Summary: Atsumu Miya had always been your home. But what if things changed

Tags: Fluff, Angst, cheating

2k words

Part Two: Silence

Atsumu Miya showed you the most love and care. Being with him felt like you were home. And it’s funny because in the beginning you wanted absolutely nothing to do with the setter.

———

Seeing his hords of fan girls crowding his desk every morning made you want to gag mainly because it interfered with you claiming your own seat. Everyday it was the same when you were in high school. You’d make your way to class only to find you seat inaccessible. After finally being able to shoo away the path to your desk just in time for class to start you’d deal with Atsumu incessant chattering or what he’d refer to as flirting. You honestly didn’t understand how he thought those lame lines would work on anyone. But every class with out fail he’d always have some lame line to spew at you. It made no sense in your eyes why you out of the sea of girls and some boys he could pick from why did he have his sights set on you.

You paid no mind in the beginning rolling you eyes at all his advances. You figured it was just some game to him it’s not like any of what he said genuine at least not to you. Apparently the volleyball player thought these attempts were the most romantic things ever when he finally cornered you after class one.

“ Aye I have been trying my best to get your attention for the last month,” he said as he laid his hand on your desk trapping you in your place, “What’s y’er deal?” You cocked you head to the side in disbelief. Moving his arm to the side you stood straightening you paper to put in you bag. Turning back to face him.

“Miya-San you can’t actually expect me to believe that was your “best effort” in trying to win my affection” you chuckled. Atsumu there with a look of confusion dawning his (what you couldn’t deny) extremely handsome face. Decided to cut your fellow second year some slack you continued. “None of your lines were meaningful, you showed no authentic interest in me,” you gave him a soft smile starting to make your way out of the class room. You stopped at the door turning and presenting him with a wicked smile “ it won’t be that easy, make sure to give it y’er all next.” And with that you we’re gone leaving him in disbelief he’d never been turned down before. He gave a small laugh to no one but himself as he decided in that moment he’d do everything to make you his.

Sure enough he put his all into trying to win your heart. While he wasn’t rude to his fan girls he definitely didn’t indulge them as much which eased your morning commute to your desk. Next were the notes he would leave. The first few were longer and almost made you want to laugh your ass off they were his love letter to you that you could tell he tried to make sound poetic. ( failing epically) but still you send him a small smile and a nod in acceptance. The other were little notes, some stating small facts about what he liked about you or little jokes about the day. Next was the gifts he would leave you. Once it was a small flower, another time a candy bar, most recently a delicious piece of milk bread. All of these little tokens definitely grabbed your heart but the moment you knew you had fallen for him was the day after you came back to school after having a cold. After sitting in your seat next to him you saw him rummage through his bag he turned to you and present you with all the notes he had taken for you through your absence. Seeing this boy who’s mind only ever focus on volleyball and cared little for his own grade do this broke down all your wall. You stared at the notes for a moment before leaning over and place a small kiss to his cheek. A blush crept up both of you faces. And from that moment forward you were his.

———

But that was then. It was now six years later and not only was Atsumu Miya your home he was also your fiancé. You had each been there for each other through everything. You were there through nationals and comforted him through his loss. You were there with him to celebrate every win. He stood by you side as you stared college and you stayed by his side as he joined the professional league. Through the years you had your highs and lows but your love for him never wavered. Not through the distance his job would bring and the scheduling conflict with your schooling and his training. In the end none of that mattered to you because you were his and he was yours. The nights you spent in each other’s arm were the best thing you could have ever wished for.

As of recently though even if he was your home. You were beginning to feel less like his. It started with small things like extra practice which wasn’t anything you werent used to Atsumu had the habit of over working himself. You don’t say anything yet because you knows he gotten better and knows his limits. It progresses to though he’s becoming more distant always heading straight to bed after meals.

“Hey Tsumu wanna watch a movie tonight?” You smile weakly from the couch.

“Not tonight YN I’m really tired,” he reply’s placing a small kiss on your forehead as he head to bed.

It doesn’t stop there although you wish it would. He starts being out later claiming to have extra practice. But you notice the smell of alcohol on his breath when he climbs into bed believing you are asleep. And honestly you wish you would be alseep so maybe some nights you wouldn’t see the signs. The next clue was when he now put a lock on his phone. Something he had never done before. But still you don’t question him. The “late practices” become more frequent and it more often he gone than when he’s around.

Part of you wants to complain to you friends but for one your friends were his friends after spending so long together it’s hard for your lives not to be connected in such ways and two if you do it will make it all to real. You aren’t stupid. You know the truth you know the one reasons you both haven’t been intimate lately is because his body has marks on it from another. You realized that when you had gone into the bathroom real quick while he was showering. It was the tiniest glance but you still saw the scratches on his back that weren’t left by you. Yet you still say nothing and you doubt he realizes you saw them.

You aren’t ready for this to be real. You aren’t ready for your home to be gone. Tomorrow is your birthday and your hoping that this will be it . Tomorrow you will both spend the day together like you used to you’ll laugh and smile everything will be right. Everything will go back to the way it was. Even though deep down you know the truth. And the truth is that you’ve cried yourself to sleep every night the past month wondering where you went wrong. Wondering how you weren’t good enough. Wondering what you should have done to make him stay. But he’s never home to see those tear you cry.

The next morning you wake and go to start some breakfast leaving Atsumu in bed. You wonder when he got home but you know it doesn’t matter. You hear the shower start as you made your coffee. Shortly after the setter appears wearing his training clothes and his duffel bag packed. “ I’m heading to the gym,” he states giving you a quick peck to the temple before heading to the door. Those little kisses always cause your heart to squeeze in hope. He doesn’t wait for a response as he leaves. A sigh leaves you lips as you realize he hadn’t said anything to you about your birthday. You shake your head and fool yourself into thinking he’ll surprise you later.

You continued you day getting little birthday messages from friends and family. Osamu had a box of Onigiri sent to you for lunch with a note saying Happy Birthday. You have a nice call with your best friend Suna and he tells you he’ll come see you soon to celebrate. You were on the phone with Suna longer than you expected seeing the time now said 5:37. After ending the call you see one missed messaged from Tsmu 💕 : practicing late tonight don’t wait up.

You heart stops. He really forgot. You really mean that little that he forgot your birthday. It was the final straw. Although part of your body wanted to break down into sobs you remained calm as though working on auto pilot. Slowly you make your way to your room grabbing your luggage and started packing all of your essentials and anything you couldn't bare to leave behind not knowing if you’d have the courage to return. After finally loading your car it was now 7:20. You knew you shouldn’t that you’d only get hurt more but you pulled out your phone and did something you never could bring yourself to do before. You checked his location. A chuckle leaves your lips as you see he’s at your favorite restaurant. The one you both loved so much and had spent countless anniversaries dinners at. Not thinking you run back into your condo that you shared with the twin. You dug to the back of you closest and quickly change into one of your favorite dresses. Your hair was already nice and you didn’t need much make up so as you finished getting ready you left. Heading straight to the restaurant.

You can’t say for sure what cause you to want to go there. Maybe a small part of yourself needed to see it. But sure enough you can’t mistake that yellow hair sitting toward the back of the restaurant is your fiancé with another woman. His back is to you and her attention is all on him enraptured in whatever garbage he’s spewing. In that moment a calm rage settles over you. You look at the hostess and requested a table a little ways away from them one where your still out of his view. As you sit you place an order for a glass of wine still setting up how you want to approach this. Then an daring thought crosses your mind. You called for your waitress.

“Excuse me but you see that couple over there,” you said motioning towards them. “Yes ma’am” she nods. “Well that’s my best friend over there and I really love to do something nice for them it’s their birthday!” The waitress smiles as you explain your plan. You sit and wait as you sip your wine when finally the waitress walks over to their table.

“Hi” the waitress greets them before setting down the dessert. A look of confusion crosses their faces and you can’t help but grin. Atsumu smiles politely before looking down at the cake. His smile drops immediately as he read the cake “Happy Birthday YN”. You giggle as you see the panic in his eyes. “I’m sorry we didn’t order this,” the unknown woman states to the waitress. You can see the waitress smile as she points to your table an explains your friend ordered it for you. You not quite sure how to explain the emotions written on Atsumu’s face as he watches you walk up the table.

“Y-YN,” he stutters. You can see the look of confusion on the girls face and for moment you feel sorry for her maybe she was just as clueless as you. “Hi Tsmu,” you smile leaning over to take a bite of your birthday cake. “Mmm Chocolate, delicious,” you smiled before looking him dead in the eyes as you removed your engagement ring and dropped it in his glass of champagne. “You can have this back,” you state bitterly before turning around and handing your waitress a big bill to cover your drink the cake and a nice tip. You start to walk of as you hear him call for you. But you refuse to turn back. You know your moment of strength is fading and you won’t let him see you tears. So you keep walking straight to you car and drive away. Not sure where to go. You just left your home.

This my first time writing angst and also my fist time writing in a while.

Also unedited

Home Masterlist

#haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu x y/n #haikyuu angst #hq #atsumu x y/n #atsumu x reader #haikyuu atsumu #atsumu miya #atsumu angst #haikyuu cheating

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gb-patch · 3 years

Text

Ask Answers: June 6th, 2021

I’m back with more ask responses! You can also check our Frequently Asked Question sheet if there’s something you’re wondering that’s not answered here.

FAQ Also, if you prefer to just see the main posts without all the asks/reblogs, feel free to follow our side account instead: GB Patch Updates Blog

Thank you for the patience with these questions ♡

Hey in very beginning of step 3 in the scene where Mr.Holden had a thought dancing on the tip of his tongue but he kept it to himself after MC and Cove were being cute (idk if it makes a difference but this is when they're dating)... Can we know what he was thinking/ wanted to say? It's been bugging me lol

He would’ve gone into a “look how much you’ve grown”, “your dad is so proud of you”, “I’m so glad things worked out with the MC”, and etc spiel, haha. But he resisted the urge to fawn on his baby boy, at least for that scene.

If we planned to move away for college/future plans in step 3, is it implied that MC and Cove would have a long distance relationship for sure? Could MC have convinced Cove to come with them? How is the dynamic of their relationship going to be addressed in Step 4, if that makes sense?

Cove is willing to follow the MC where they went after everything is settled for them there, and if they’re sure they want him to come! You’ll get to decide how things shook out during those transitional years just by making choices about it during the opening prologue of Step 4.

Hi! First off, how does it feel to have created one of the best games when it comes to inclusion for lbtq+ peeps? I've never felt as validated with my identity and sexuality when playing a game and I'm seemingly not alone ♥ Second, and this might be a little too specific, but what kinds of drinks does Cove like as well as dislike? Thank you, you're the best ♥

Thank you for very much! It’s really nice to hear the game felt inclusive. Cove likes regular water and fruit juices/smoothies most! He dislikes coffee and cola, and he’s not super into most teas either.

Hi, may i ask what gb patch stands for? Specifically the gb part lol

It stands for my old, silly username I used in places like Neopets as a kid, aha. The company name wasn’t super thought out since it was originally just me making VNs as a hobby. Luckily, “GB Patch” kind of seems like it could mean something reasonable, so I didn’t have to rebrand when it did become a more serious, commercial group.

If we chose to not propose to cove in the step 3 dlc would he propose or would the mc propose in step 4 or the wedding dlc?

Yeah, you or Cove can propose in Step 4 if you’re not already engaged! The Wedding DLC takes place after the engagement so the proposal scenes aren’t there.

will you guys announce if the early access for the new game is out on patreon ?

When beta builds of Step 4 or whatever start coming out on the Patreon we will mention it here on social media too.

Heyy I just had a quick question about Baxter if that’s okay :)?

I saw in an ask+answer that it’s possible to casually date Baxter In step 3, but what leads up to that? I have the step 3 dlc and I’ve tried playing them In a different orders and ways but it doesn’t seem to get anywhere ^^;

The Step 3 DLC is Cove-based because he’s the default guy. There’s a separate Baxter romance DLC that’s not out yet. That’s where you can get him to date you. I’m sorry for the confusion!

Will we ever get any LI's or side characters with physical disabilities or deformities? I think your games would be a great place to have them in since they're always so accepting and safe!

Yeah, we do hope to have representation for that in future projects ^^. Thank you for the confidence in us.

Is it possible to get Cove to take the bed and MC to sleep on the floor?

Not in Step 3, I’m afraid.

So, I have played the prologue of Our Life countless times and I haven't gotten the [Your Life] achievement, why is that?

Steam sometimes isn’t connected properly when an achievement unlocks and so it remains locked on your account. If that happens, unfortunately getting the scene again won’t unlock it. The achievement becomes inaccessible because the game thinks you already have it. Playing with the same Steam account on a different device or fully deleting your game data (more than the only the save files) are the only work arounds we’ve found.

Since when you talk with Jeremy in step 3 it's mentioned he goes on dates with someone (which assume is JB because who else would take this boy on dates) that makes him happy, does that sort of make JB and Jeremy the canon relationship in the first game?

The default for XOXO Droplets is that JB casually goes on dates with each of the jerks! Shiloh would’ve been harsher if Jeremy was the only guy getting her attention, haha. But the player can change that default by dating just one person the whole game for their own story and who she ends up with for real has no default.

Hi, hello! Huge OL fan, thank you so much for the wholesome content, it was very much needed during these times. Managed to get several people to join team Cove, so that's very exciting, I always have people to fawn over him with. I have a little question and I'm sorry if it was asked before, but does it ever come up in the game what Cove has told his mom about us? (who knows, with so many options, one can miss it) Or, alternatively, will it come up in the Step 4 DLC?

Thank you very much for sharing the game with people <3. It’s really great to hear people are liking it. Right now that doesn’t come up in game. Kyra is willing to keep her mouth shut and Cove isn’t gonna have that conversation either. At least not when he’s younger, but yes, perhaps when he’s a fully grown big boy in Step 4 you can ask him about it.

I’ve been thinking about this ever since it has been confirmed that there would be two love interests for OL2, would there be the possibility of forming a polyamorous relationship with both love interests? I’m sorry if you answered this previously, I’m just curious.

We are considering it, but it’s not a guarantee yet. It’d be really great to have but it’d add so many extra alterations that’d need to made, aha.

Hello! You mentioned how Cove would be uncomfortable with kids at 23, but how old would he be when he’s comfortable with having/adopting kids? (Same goes for the other LI’s.) btw, love your game!!

He’d want to be at least 25, but even older would be good. Derek would want to have kids when he and his partner could reasonably support them, the age itself wouldn’t matter. If they were doing good at 22 and wanted kids, he’d be up for it. Or they could wait until their 30s or whatever. Baxter is also more of a “when it feels right” guy rather than having a specific age requirement. Cove is just especially wary of being a young parent because of his own parents. I’m happy you like the game!

does step 4 immediately play after you press "end summer" in step 3? or is there another button/transition (like the story text thingy) before the epilogue begins? what happens after the epilogue? roll credits? 😂

Step 4 will have transition section always and there will be an extra button, if you own the Derek or Baxter DLC. By default the Cove-based version of Step 4 just plays once Step 3 is over. However, having the other guys’ storylines will mean you get to pick which version of Step 4 plays; Cove Step 4 (the basic one), Derek Step 4, or Baxter Step 4.

Happy pride, thank you for all you do for us🥰

I have a quick question though, I recently got a MacBook after my old windows computer broke, and now steam says I cannot download it, but it has no issues with other games, what can I do to download it?? I’m sorry if my English is bad

Happy pride month! Unfortunately, Our Life isn’t available for Mac on Steam right now. To be an approval application Apple requires having special notarization and we as a small group haven’t gotten that. Itch doesn’t care and lets us release the game for Mac there anyway, Steam does care so we’re locked out of putting the Mac build up on their storefront. Feel free to email us and we can try to help the situation out further!

[email protected]

Hello! I was jus wondering if the Baxter and Derek DLCs are still happening? I haven’t heard anything about them on here or patreon in a while so I just wanted to make sure ^^

They’re still coming and we just released a new sprite sketch on the Patreon for the Derek DLC c:. But right now Step 4 is still much more of a priority. Once that’s closer to being done we’ll focus way more on sharing previews for the other guys.

is it possible to tell cove you love him (platonically) at step 3 fondness/selecting him as basically family? i just love the mc and liz sibling interactions and it got me wondering about it (especially if you've selected that option)

You and Cove can be as close as family, but there’s not a specific scene in Step 3 where you say “I love you” in a family context. But there’s always Step 4~

do you intend on ever adding a collectors mode to Our Life? Like a way to collect achievements and CGs for the gallery without it effecting any save files?

We weren’t considering it before. But if a lot of players would find that helpful, we could start thinking on that!

Sorry if it's a silly question haha, but (in crush/love) is Cove really aware of how cute and cuddly he seems to MC? If so, what does he think or do about it? Or does he just ignore it?

He isn’t particular aware. Cove never truly stops being surprised that the MC is interested in/attracted to him, haha.

Would you say that the alone ending of xoxo droplets is worth playing again to get?

Nope, haha. The goal is to make friends/get a boyfriend and so the alone ending is kind of the bad ending for the game. Though there is a consolation prize if you get it by accident.

Is there any possible situation which would ever prompt Pran to bake for his girlfriend? Like I know it's unlikely I mean even if JB broke her leg somehow I'm pretty sure he'd still be like "I considered baking you a cake and doing the frosting the way I think looks interesting but you don't deserve a cake, no one does." right but also ahhh it would be super nice if some day he just surprised her with baked goods one day out of nowhere. JB would be so shocked it would be cute. So is there any possible situation where that could/would be a thing that he would do?

He might bake out of spite, like if he felt he had to prove her wrong on something. Or if JB used some good reverse psychology on him. Or he might do it in a relatively nice way if he could make his GF so shocked by the kind gesture that his amusement with that overrode his insistence on not being sweet. Pran is very difficult in high school, aha.

Is the "one route (where) it can be seen that Everett will drop his seemingly eternal waging with Jeremy pretty easily and can start getting along without thinking much on it" the Lucas route? I'm curious!

Yep! Everett will side with Jeremy if it’s between him and Lucas.

Hi I hope you guys are having a great day :) I just had to ask how Cliff would feel about Cove's partner/fiancé Mc calling them dad whether it be accidental or otherwise and secondly I also wanted to ask how he would feel about being asked to be the one to give the mc away at their wedding.

He would be very touched and excited! I hope you have a good day too :D

Hello! I saw an ask relating to whether Cliff "moves on" after Cove's grown up and stuff (and he stays single), but what about Kyra? Will she be with anyone else or will she stay single?

She does start dating again, but she takes it slow.

Hi! I absolutely love the art for characters in OL and I wonder is this fine to draw my MC in same drawing style and upload online later? Is this something artists would be okay with? Thank you!

Yeah, you can certainly do that C:

Hey there!

I wonder if I'm just being stupid here.. Is Step 4 a DLC? And if so, where can I find it? I can't seem to find it on Steam :< Thank you!

Step 4 is a free epilogue! It’s not done yet, but once it is finished you’ll just update your game file and Step 4 will be there after Step 3 ends.

hi! are step 4 and the wedding dlc two different things?

They are. Step 4 is a free epilogue that’ll be a default part of the game once it’s done, the wedding DLC is an optional paid expansion that takes place after Step 4.

Why did Baxter not receive a step 2 sprite seeing how he shows up later

Sprites are time consuming to draw and take money out of the budget that could’ve gone to other things. His tiny appearance in Step 2 wasn’t worth all the effort to make a sprite, aha.

I just realized, what happens if if you get the patreon exclusive moment but at a later date, when you don't have the membership anymore, it's updated (like a bugs fix update for example)? Would you have to get the membership again?

You would have to get the membership again to redownload the build. But there’s very little chance there’s going to be an update once it’s been out for over a month. If a build gets released with errors, players catch/report them within the first few days. So by the time the first subscription period ends, any problems that were noticeable would already have been fixed. And we’re certainly not gonna be adding new content to it once it’s been released for a long time. There’s no need to worry about missing out on something worthwhile in the future if you cancel your membership. It’s being made with the idea in mind that many players are gonna be getting it and then going.

Hello! Wanted to ask about gaming choice in step 3? Once upon a playthorugh I got the option to buy Cove a bracelet for his graduation present. I played the same basic character again and that option wasn't there anymore. I'm not sure where I went wrong. My Cove wears a bracelet on each hand and my MC is into fashion and jewelry. Do I need to put an earring on him or? Sorry, love your game so much.

He also needs to have liked bracelets in Step 2 for that to be considered a good gift option for him. Sorry for the confusion! I’m happy you love the game :)

Is Step 4 being released at the same time as the Wedding DLC or will the first come before the latter? Thank you!

I’m not sure. Ideally they’ll come out at the same time, but the wedding DLC has a lot of art to get done and we may have to release it after Step 4.

Can mc still get confession from Cove at the end of step 3 even if mc casually dates Baxter in step 3? Such as in crush mode?

I don’t think so. Maybe that’ll change, but generally there’s differences to the Step 3 ending if you were dating Baxter and those differences likely will conflict with getting the Cove confession.

For the patreon moments/dlcs, will it be available for all tiers?

It’ll be available for tier 2 (Fans) and up!

#our life #xoxo droplets #gb patch #ask #gb patch games #Our Life Beginnings & Always

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sealer-of-wenkamui · 2 years

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Update time

I went through with burning the erdtree, after which I was taken to Farum Azula. I had been there a few times before, but just small areas where the rest was inaccessible. It’s a gorgeous place, I love the floating ruins and all the tornadoes.

...Realized at some point that I had missed a whole area of Altus so I went back and did some dungeons and got the black knife (.......which requires more faith than I have) and even found a statue of Miquella and Malenia like the ones in the Haligtree.

Then I continued, fought the infamous godskin duo, which is a duo in the same way four kings is “four” kings.......... they kept respawning until the joint healthbar was depleted... seemed like being a bit aggressive was helpful, I mostly focused on the small one, just because the rolling attack the other one gets at half health is too annoying.

I had seen him from a distance, but I met Alexander for what would be the last time.... it was his wish, but it was still sad to see him shatter after the fight he wanted ;A;

Then there was Maliketh, who I had heard a bit about... I had fed him all the deathroot so I got the special dialogue (My friend was there to see me enter the arena but I almost instantly fell off the edge of all things, but thankfully I heard all the dialogue)

It was a really good fight once I got the feel for it! First phase was easy once I realized its best just to use a pillar to block the incantations, and swift glintstone shard actually was most useful for its quick casting time and larger range than something like reduvia blood blade.

Second phase I would die almost instantly to at first, but I got the hang of it, and something just clicked for me at one point and led me to victory. Its a ton of fun once you get down the rhythm of his attacks and know what to do (dodging into a lot of them is better). I was using swift shard again, but most of my damage actually came from parrying him with blasphemous claw (interesting that it was going to be Rykard that would fight Maliketh....) then bleeding him. Took a bit to get the hang of the parry but its not too bad to pull off. Dodge 2-3 beams then parry... His theme is gorgeous too... and the remembrance made me feel bad for him...

Next was Placidusax, which was honestly one of my favorite fights in the game, though why did they make the run kinda annoying? A lot like Midir in that he has a lot of hp and takes a while to fight, but is pretty easy to read and dodge once you get a feel for the fight. Not as hard as Midir though (though I actually don’t find Midir terrible, yeah one of the harder fights no doubt but demon prince and Gael were worse for me). Anyway, a good dragon fight, and I loved how the music would go silent for the bolt attack.

I should probably do frenzy flame now that I can clear it, I have the needle and have made it to the center of the storm... actually I’m curious if it will cure Red Eyes too, I’m not sure if the formless mother is involved there and the needle isn’t specific to frenzy flame but rather can counteract all outer gods. So if she is, maybe they’ll be gone, if not, then they won’t...? I’ll test it soon. I’m doing Fia’s ending this round so I’ll want to clear it.

Roundtable is also in flames, and Roderika sounded really worried about Hewg, and after talking to him, especially after Maliketh.... he’s losing his memory and still won’t flee... No wonder she’s so worried ;A;

And now the capital is ash... (....sorry Morgott, I burned your precious tree and now your capital is gone too) I found a disillusioned Cohryn, calling his master a madman, and Goldmask as well, now dead, but with a mending rune... And after coming back, Cohryn is dead too and I got their clothes. I know where I have to go next, probably a boss fight and I must be really close to the end, but I’m dragging it out because I don’t want it to end (even though I have over 250h and its still my first playthrough, I uh... am very thorough... )

#ER tag #i have so many pretty armors but 90% of the time i just wear war surgeon set...#elden ring spoilers #goldmask's set give me some nice sideboob #i did make aurelius a very pretty lady~

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sunpirate · 3 years

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i can’t be the only one who would’ve loved to have seen the fight between charmspoken leo and jason in medea’s lair actually go down

jason would seemingly have the upper hand with all his years of experience, but i feel like leo could hold off on his own just fine seeing as he’s very skilled with his practical abilities plus he has his rare fire power giving him range that could go against jason’s wind (considering jason still thinks lightning is inaccessible to him indoors), and not to mention leo could be very unhinged and unpredictable - characteristics that could possibly be amplified by medea’s spell, which could potentially put jason at a disadvantage since he has never faced a demigod with fire abilities before, and especially not a demigod like leo. this battle could have them push each other’s powers to the limits and discover new skills they haven’t already known since neither has ever faced an enemy like the other before

and while they’re at each other’s necks, piper is even more torn and pressured as she tries to figure out what to do. does she try to counter medea’s spell with her own charmspeak? does she go after medea and try to subdue her first? how will she be sure one of her friends won’t severely injure the other by then?

by the time piper gets jason and leo to snap out of it, the two boys are exhausted, not realizing they spent so much energy just trying to bring the other down - jason sweaty and bruised and his clothes charred from leo’s flames, leo bleeding from cuts in places where he narrowly missed getting seriously injured by jason’s blade - that when medea releases her sun dragons (and ultimately makes her escape), they’re at a more critical position trying to face these monsters at their current condition. this could be about the time leo blows his whistle and festus comes in in all his mighty metal dragon glory and saves them just in the nick of time.

i feel like having the fight between them actually go down would have leveled up the thrill and made that scene more interesting and nerve-wracking. it would’ve developed an even deeper bond between them as it gets resolved, and at the same time would have given the readers a bigger idea of the strength and potential of these new characters’ powers.

(this is just how i wish it would’ve gone in my mind but the orig scene is still great!)

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pepperpills · 3 years

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The Harvest - RE8 fanfic

The Harvest

A Resident Evil 8 fan fiction by Joana

Karl Heisenberg x Female Reader

NSFW content

Hi, guys, hope u're enjoying it and if u want, feel free to send a message and share your thoughts.

This is the second half of Part I, when The Harvest actually takes place, as I promised I would be posting it today. Part II will be out next tuesday and has more of Karl's participation.

Part I - Destiny (1)

Part I - Destiny (2)

The site was formed by four giant statues, each one in a corner, in the opposite side of the gate, a low stone fence protected people from falling from a cliff into the misty unknown that laid below. All of its surroundings were made of grey, antique stone, carved directly into the mountain. In the middle stood a symbol in the ground in the shape of an umbrella where the Giant’s Chalice was placed.

Mother Miranda was right in the middle, dressing her usual priest like costume, only this time her areola was bigger. The parents, your parents included, with their anxious expressions, were on the left side, forming a mid-circle. No other villagers were allowed in The Harvest except the children’s guardians, it was exclusive. You smiled to your folks reassuring them that you were okay, prepared. Your mom buried her head deeper in your father chest, but smiled insecurely back at you.

You couldn’t help the feeling that a couple of eyes were laid on you, you felt observed and finally gave up to your curiosity and stared at the lords. Closer to Mother Miranda, on the right side of the site, stood tall Lady Dimitrescu, the tallest person you have ever seen and also one of the most elegant. She wore a white dress that resembled the Greek columns with three black roses on it, red lipstick and a black wide hat. She seemed excited as she analysed the 20s.

Then followed Lady Beneviento, her face covered in a grief veil, she was all dressed in black, except for her doll, Angie, who wore an unclean wedding dress and was laughing almost hysterically for no reason. It would have given you the chills if you weren’t so strangely calm.

The next was Lord Moreau, forever bowed with that bone crown topping his head, he looked like he enjoyed the spirit of the festival, more entertained by its totality than the young people there.

And at last, Lord Heisenberg, a couple of steps from you as you all closed the circle. He was smoking a cigar, making a mess of bracing smoke. He was wearing round sunglasses even though it was already very dark there, his clothes were crumpled and even a bit dirty, but had an explorer’s charm to it as he wore a once-white half unbuttoned shirt, a worn hat, a camel-coloured overcoat and some kind of baggy pants.

You had the uncanny feeling it was his glance that caught you since you arrived there, but couldn’t be sure, once his eyes were hidden from you. The other thing you noticed was that he has kind of handsome with his somewhat grey hair on the height of his bearded chin. Overall, he seemed rough, a brute beauty, but beauty anyway.

The air became denser, like it was charged with electricity, however, scanning your mates, everyone appeared to be still bewitched by Beneviento’s powers, paying attention only to Mother Miranda. It had nothing to do with you disliking Miranda ever since you laid your feet in the Village. No, this was another thing. You were attracted by something else, tempted even to look to your right. Being too suggestible to battle this urge, you moved your head only to be certain that Lord Heisenberg was looking straight at you.

You quickly turned your attention back to Miranda as she played with a black liquid inside the Giant’s Chalice. She called you all her children and made a speech about destiny and natural forces that pull you to it.

“Night demands you, my children. The moon reveals your fate and today your sacrifice will be noticed.” Miranda chanted, her voice floating through all of you, reverberating the ground.

She blessed you, walking the circle and pinning a dot of the Chalice’s black liquid in your foreheads. It moved, itching a little, as her words filled the ceremony site.

“Very well.” She spoke. “Now I shall call your names, the ones I call, please step to the right part of the site, the ones I don’t, to the left.”

A shiver flowed through your spine, awakening every part of your body, bristling your hair, hardening your nipples making you feel completely unclad – which kind of reached the ceremony idea of a virgin blossoming. The sensation was curiously similar to electrical shock, even the iron taste on your tongue reminded you of the electricity discharge, nonetheless, for your surprise, it wasn’t exactly unpleasant, definitely made your feel alive and even dilatated your pupils.

When it happened, you swore your heard Lord Heisenberg chuckling alone, he was contained for obvious reasons, but it disturbed you to see a smirk playfully on his scarred thick lips. No one else appeared to be bothered though, they hadn’t noticed the man acting schizophrenic, but it also made sense, they were all absorbed by Miranda’s discourse and, somehow, that grin was intended, presumably, only for you.

Just then you realized that Miranda had already been calling names and people were actually moving around you. Two of the boys who came with you were now on the very right side of the site. You were getting tense, the magical feeling that drove you to that place was slowly fading away, giving space to the cold sensation of fear. The girl to your left got called, she lost her breath as she heard her name, but rapidly joined her new, and temporary, team.

You looked up to your parents, your mom had that overwhelmed expression lines on her forehead again and you were most sure she was crossing fingers as she is a little stitious, not super, though.

Right now, you don’t believe that any herb, crystal, sacrifice, nor witchcraft would have spare you from your doom. A part of you knew it, even at that moment, as Mother Miranda made your name thunder in the site. Your mom held a scream, your dad looked down. You must go on.

Trembling a little, you went to the right side, closer to Lord Heisenberg, as he was the last one on the lords’ line. Your mates were rigid, the other girl was holding tears, one of the boys had desperate written all over his face, but the other one preferred to show bravery and you chose to stay with him in his decision. It didn’t past unnoticed to Heisenberg, but he constantly peering at you wasn’t of your greater attention, so on you didn’t acknowledge his offbeat interest.

You weren’t going to lie to yourself, you were afraid. You didn’t want Lady Dimitrescu to use your blood in her famous Sanguis Virginis, neither to be with Lady Beneviento and her forever tea party, Lord Moreau frightens you, due to your thalossophobia and for Lord Heisenberg, his temper is well known and poorly spoken by the villagers, he tends to get angry easily, not to say that no one knows what goes on in that factory, the bridge that leads to it emerges from the water, activated by some sort of mechanism that is inaccessible from the Village, so no one goes in, no one comes out.

When The Harvest ended, the villagers were exempted before the Miranda and her family, and you were allowed to go home, the lords knew you were supposed to say goodbye to your loved ones, after all, they aren’t monsters, right?

Thus, you walked back home in your parents embrace, they didn’t let you go, neither you wanted it. Being held like that made it feel better as if you had a bad dream and that was all. Your mother even sang you your favourite childhood song about a girl who gets lost in the dangerous woods inhabited by four monsters and a malevolent witch, but in the end, her parents save her from the beasts.

In the dawn, no villager was asleep, so you spoke to a lot of people, all your siblings, friends and acquaintances. Some of them cried, others smiled and a couple encouraged you saying it was going to be okay. You doubted it, but didn’t say a thing, you were too shaken still trying to be brave.

When the sun rose, you heard the chicken starting their day. You got up, put on a Victorian black dress with long sleeves and a corselet for the thorax area, and packed your few belongings, taking good care of your bow and arrows that once were a secret and now, you thought, might be discarded, but you would still be stubborn and give it a try, maybe they would let you have it.

You left the bedroom, leaving behind your talisman made by the cabin people with a note to your younger sister. Once she was born in the Village, she didn’t know much about the cabins, but you were sure it would protect her after you were gone.

You believed you could go away unnoticed, but your mom was sitting in the kitchen table, waiting for you, looking restless, but she found vitality to smile a good morning at you.

“You look pretty.” She said as she walked towards you and twirled your hair.

“Thank you, mom.” You simply replied, thinking that touch was soothing.

“We will miss you.” She sighed. “I will miss you, deeply, my angel.” Your mom is one of the kindest people you know, she always took good care of you even when you got older, you will miss her too.

“I will miss you too, mom… I love you.” You added and hugged her. You must be strong; her smell of country flowers softened you tempting you to run away from your fate.

“Promise you will try to write.” She pleaded, staring into your soul with her woody-brown eyes.

“I promise.” You meant it and did afterwards.

“It is okay, angel, you may go now, I won’t make it any harder.” She stepped aside, giving you space to walk to the door, when there you looked back one last time and waved goodbye.

At the ceremony site, they said you should gather again at the Chapel. A part of the building is destroyed, you are not sure what was responsible for it, but there are parts of the ceiling and the ground that are missing and underground tunnels with Gods know what meandering under your feet. The others arrived not long after you and less than an hour later Mother Miranda joined you.

She spoke from the pulpit. This sight gave you an uneasiness. You never liked her manners, always thought she considered herself too much of a priest, but you were not sure for what gods she spoken, in addition, she was also very domineering. There were stories of her whispered by mourning souls saying that she would tear some locals apart while laughing and enjoying the bloody spectacle. Maybe she was crazy. Believing it or not, she didn’t please you at all.

“Children.” She began. “Destiny calls you. You must fulfil your role in this circle. It is a sacrifice for all of us, so we can preserve our way of life.” Miranda went on like this for some more minutes before getting to the point.

“Each one of you has been designated or requested by one of the four lords. I will now say your name and the name of your Lord.” She finally said.

Your heart rate was worrying, your anxiety levels were high. You breathed heavily, trying to regain composure. Miranda called the brave boy first, he went to Moreau. Two girls got sent to the Dimitrescu’s castle, one more boy went to Moreau, another girl went to Lady Beneviento. Thus, there was only you left and Miranda’s phrase reverberated through the Chapel with its angelical acoustic turning horrifying.

“Y/N. Lord Karl Heisenberg.”

Your stomach sunk. You didn’t know if you were relieved or even more preoccupied. But then you felt that shock sensation again, the iron taste made you salivate and you thought it might have been worst, maybe all he expects from you is some cleaning, laundry and your normal daily routine.

Still, one thing that Miranda said echoed in your head: did you get designated or did he request you? You didn’t know which one would be better.

#resident evil #re8 #karl heisenberg #re village #karl heisenberg x reader #resident evil 8 village #heisenberg #heisendaddy #heisenberg resident evil #resident evil viii #resident evil 8 fanfic #original post #resident evil village #re8 karl heisenberg #resident evil heisenberg #fanfic #re fanfic #the harvest

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agallimaufryofoddments · 3 years

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Lasersight’s Translation of Narita’s 2020 “Baccano! 193X Cherry Blossom Circus” short story

Many of you have already seen my scans of Narita’s two short stories that were included in the KADOKAWA Light Novel EXPO 2020 Official Memorial Book. Some of you may not have yet seen or read the translations of both that are now out.

@lasersight has sent me their translation of the Baccano! short story, the title of which she has translated as “Baccano! 193X Cherry Blossom Circus.” I am sharing the story on their behalf per their request. (Though, should they decide to share the story in their own post after all, I’ll gleefully pass that post along).

HERE is the Google Doc link containing the translation, as provided by Tumblr user Lasersight.

I suppose I should copy the text below a [Read More] cut in case the link is inaccessible/goes down, but be sure to check the link first; after all, it can be edited/updated as needed. For another translation of the story, as well as a translation of the Durarara!! x Baccano! crossover, see @sawagiacademy‘s blog (posts to be reblogged). All three of these links, as well as @houjicha’s summary of both stories, can be found in the main reblog chain of the original scans post.

In the meantime, definitely stop by lasersight’s blog for some great Baccano! fanart you may have missed (me: “look at all this excellent content I’ve been missing out on due to the thesis crisis!”); don’t forget to thank them while there!

TEXT BELOW IS AN UNEDITED COPY OF THE TRANSLATION VERSION ACCESSED ON JUNE 11, 2021, AS PROVIDED IN LASERSIGHT’S DOC

Baccano! 193X Cherry Blossom Circus

By Ryohgo Narita Illustration: Katsumi Enami

Night had well and truly fallen on the Washington riverside.

Gazing upwards from a street lined by many trees, a group of women were engaged in conversation.

“Ehh? They were blooming last time I came…” pouted a dejected Miria Harvent.

Beside her, Nice Holystone interjected.

“Looks like they’ve already fallen, hey?”

The flowers must have been in full bloom just a few days ago, but now, they were almost completely gone. On the barren branches, only a few green buds remained.

“It’s because the wind was super strong yesterday. We should have gotten here 107,200 seconds earlier.”

“Hyaha!”

Nice’s friends Melody and Chaini were also staring up at the trees, muttering words that may or may not have made any sense.

“Last time, when I heard about these cherry blossoms from Mr. Yaguruma... I came to see them and they were so beautiful… I just wanted to show you all…”

“Oh, I’ve heard about these too. Apparently twenty years ago, 2000 cherry blossom trees were sent over from Japan…”

“Even before then! Way, way before then, people spent years and years trying to plant them, you know! The very first 2000 trees the Japanese sent over caught diseases on the ship and had to be burned….”

At Miria’s despondent words, Nice smiled quietly and returned her gaze to the trees that surrounded them.

“These trees have some real history…”

In order to deal with certain business matters, the group had arrived in Washington D.C. Having set off on a different path from Jacuzzi and Isaac due to various circumstances, it was only the women who were now gazing at the row of cherry blossom trees.

“Isaac told me that people gather under these trees, because cherry blossom pollen can be used as medicine!”

“Pollen as medicine? I wonder if that’s some sort of Chinese herbal remedy…”

As Nice tilted her head, pondering this over, Melody stepped in.

“It’s what’s inside the pollen. It’s called ephedrine. It works wonders on your bronchial tube, and some people say it also acts as a stimulant. Well, the amount of ephedrine in cherry blossom pollen is less than significant, but still,” she spoke, casually.

Spurred on by the long-winded explanation, Miria once again recalled a conversation she had with Isaac.

“And! Listen, listen - the leaves are poisonous! That’s why people come to look at the flowers, but no one ever comes to look at the leaves!”

“Ah, that would be the coumarin. It’s been said that once dissolved in rain, this substance can make other plants wither, but as for humans, as long as you don’t consume too much of it, you’ll be fine. If you do, it’ll have negative effects on your liver and kidney.”

“You sure know a lot about some weird things, Melody. Miria, so do you…” Nice mused, marvelling at the strangeness of her friends.

Taking little notice of Nice’s bewilderment, Miria continued with her spiel.

“But! If you use it in a certain way, that poison can become medicine, too! Ain’t that incredible? Reborn, like a phoenix! It’s the circle of life!”

Despite her bout of dejection at the fallen flowers just minutes earlier, Miria seemed to be back to her cheerful self.

Relieved, Nice turned towards the other woman they were travelling with.

“Chané. Is something wrong? You look serious.”

“......”

Having been listening to their conversation in silence, the woman in the black dress - Chané Laforet - was staring at the darkness that enveloped the opposite side of the riverbank.

Suddenly, from that darkness, a group of what could only be described as street scoundrels emerged, marching towards them with weapons in hand as if ready to start a fight.

“...Ah. Our location’s been exposed, has it? I hope Jacuzzi and the others got away safely…” Nice sighed.

If one were to describe the women’s current situation in a string of words, “About To Be Killed By A Local Gang In The Middle Of Their Business Operations” would likely suffice.

In any case, it was a situation they were all too familiar with, and as always, Nice snapped into action.

“I wouldn’t want to damage the trees… ‘bout this much should do it. Alright.”

Having promptly lit the fuse on a handmade firecracker she’d pulled out from who knows where, Nice lobbed it at the approaching rascals with no hesitation. Their cries rang out from the blast that followed. And then---

“Ah…!”

Miria let out a cry of surprise, leading Melody and the others to turn towards where she was looking.

Upon doing so, the group laid eyes upon the river beside them, which the rays of the blast had put into full view. It was draped in a stunning pink carpet - one made of the very petals that had fallen just before they’d arrived.

“Wow, Nice! We got to see the flowers, after all, thanks to you!” Miria rejoiced innocently, impassive to the sound of the reverberating blast. “I wanna show Isaac and Jacuzzi!”

Beside her, Nice wore an enraptured smile.

“That ephedrine’s got me all worked up, too.”

“Oh, that’s definitely not the ephedrine. If you’re all worked up, it’s probably because of the bomb you threw 28 seconds ago.”

Ignoring Melody’s words, Nice started throwing even more bombs at their enemies.

“We’ve gotta come back and see the flowers properly next year, so make sure you all stay alive, okay!” she shouted, the cheerful smile on her face illuminated by the blast.

The women began running, as the petals on the ground drifted through the dust and smoke. In that moment, it was as if they themselves were petals dancing in the breeze.

But unlike the flowers, their spirits would never fall.

Along with the times, they’d continue to bloom.

#Baccano!#Baccano #official media #translation #psa #lasersight

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saqrqa3d · 3 years

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Raising Muslim Children in Non-Muslim Lands

Muslim parents, be vigilant about childrearing, especially if you find yourself raising children in the non-Muslim west.

Do not allow that non-Muslim mainstream culture to raise your children for you. Do not look away from your children, or let your gaze drift to other tasks like your job, your master's or PhD program, your social life, your house work, your friend circle, your community work, or whatever other distraction. Those other tasks are not bad in and of themselves-- but they are not as important as your real job: raising your Muslim children.

As a parent, your number-one priority is to provide Islamic tarbiya to your children. The results are outside your control ultimately, but your responsibility is still to try.

I have relative who is a 21 years old young woman, and a situation from a couple days ago has got me thinking about this issue. Let's call her Marwa.

Marwa was born and raised in the US. Her parents are religious Arab Muslims from Egypt. They were well-meaning parents who generally understood that tarbiya is important and that this American non-Muslim culture is in direct opposition to Islamic values. But they did not appreciate the depth of the clash of mainstream American values and Islamic ones, and so they failed to protect their children from certain things they should have. They were too lenient and permissive.

Marwa and her siblings went to American public schools as the parents worked low-paying jobs and went to school to try to make ends meet. Marwa was introduced to swear words like the f-word and other vulgar language at a young age in elementary school, and later was introduced to anorexia and cutting (self-harm) in middle school. Then in high school, at the age of 14, she was introduced to drugs in the form of marijuana and cigarettes.

Her best friends were two non-Muslim American girls from her kindergarten class. They grew up together.

They did everything together, Marwa, a Muslim girl, and Melissa and Katy, two non-Muslim girls. They hung out at school, went to each other's houses after school, and sometimes had sleepovers. All three had boyfriends, even Marwa.

Marwa's parents had made the mistake of giving her a smartphone when she was far too young, sometime in middle school. She was maybe 11 or 12 when she got her first iPhone. It opened up a whole world hitherto inaccessible to the young girl. This is how she met her non-Muslim boyfriend: chatting with non-Muslim strangers online with the smartphone her parents gave her.

All three girls smoked weed in high school. Vaping (using a vape, or "a pen," is like smoking an e-cigarette) is trending right now at American high schools across the country. Marwa vaped too, despite the fact that it hurt her lungs.

When her mother found out she was vaping, Marwa said, "She can deal with it."

Marwa is now 21 and currently going to a school in a different state from the one her parents live in. Her two besties, Melissa and Katy, miss her since she's no longer living near them, and so the three girls planned an elaborate weekend trip together.

The trip itself is relatively tame, compared to what it could have been. The girls planned to go camping at a campsite in the woods, for three days and two nights, at a place about an hour away from her school. But the noteworthy thing here is that Marwa planned this whole affair without once consulting her parents or asking their permission.

A couple days ago, Marwa mentioned the trip to me casually, saying, "Hey, so my friends and I are gonna go camping next weekend."

I asked her about some of the details, and she replied with short answers. Then I asked her, "What do your parents think? Did they say yes?"

She shrugged. "I haven't told them. I'll let them know eventually."

I said jokingly, "If you were my daughter, I'd have said no. I don't think this is a good idea, honestly. Make sure you ask your parents and don't just assume they'll say yes."

The first conversation ended there. I felt distrubed and troubled. How can a young unmarried woman create plans for a whole weekend, pay money, book cabins, buy tickets, make solid and concrete travel plans all without asking her parents' permission?

Later that day, I called her parents (who trust me to keep an eye on her as she lives away from them). Neither of them had a clue about what their daughter was doing and when they found out, they were disappointed but unsurprised. "We wanted her to focus on studying," they said mildly. "She's going to fall behind in her classes by getting distracted with her friends for the weekend."

Later still that same day, Marwa and I talked again. She said she told her parents and they were fine with her going camping with her friends, because she'd sent them the website of the campsite and assured them that it was perfectly safe.

But the problem isn't about going camping itself, I explained to her. The problem is in her methodology. How can a young unmarried woman move around and do stuff without allowing parental input? You ask for permission first, THEN after the parents say yes, you tell your friends to buy their plane tickets and you book the cabin and reserve your spots.

Not the other way around.

And if your parents say no, it's a no. This is respect for parents. Your parents mean something.

Marwa had a history of employing this slick methodology with her hapless parents. She flew cross-country once to meet up with her boyfriend in this exact way, secretly making all the plans without asking her parents.

This is not a one-time thing. It's a mode of operation, standard procedure for this young woman for years now.

I said, "If your parents had said no, would you still have gone? Why would you pay actual money before asking them?"

She looked me straight in the eye and said, "Honestly, I wasn't asking them, I was telling them. I want to do what I want to do. I'm an adult. I'm not a child who needs anyone's permission. I can do things I want to do as long as I'm being safe. Plus I know haram and halal, and I'm not doing anything haram. Camping isn't haram! So why would they say no? I know they are worried about my safety, I've got their whole speech memorized in my head. But that's why I do my own thing and then just tell them afterward, or at the last second. I don't give them a chance to say no. If I give them an opportunity to say no, of course they will say no! They wouldn't let me do anything! So I just decide what I want to do, then make my plans without asking them, then I tell them later, 'Look, I'm doing X or Y.' That's it."

This is the American, liberal, westernized mentality. I am my own person with no one to answer to. Nobody controls me. I'm an adult. I have freedom and agency. I want to live my life.

Why should I ask anyone for permission for anything, even my own parents?

They don't control me, either.

When you grow up steeped up to your eyebrows in the American public school system, which strips parents of their rights, of their authority over their own children, of their relevance-- you see your parents as irrelevant.

When your best friends are non-Muslims without parental guidance, raised by single moms and never having met their dads, you subconsciously start adopting that irreverent attitude toward parents.

When you grow up watching American TV shows and movies where parents are regularly duped and trolled and outsmarted by kids, and when you have had a smartphone since childhood, these technologies get in the way of your relationship with your parents.

So of course, it's inevitable that the result is this. Seeing your parents as just people you tell things to after the fact, not people you ask for permission.

And the parents just need to "deal with it." Take it or leave it. The child sets the rules for the tone of the parent-child relationship.

The prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم foretold that as we near the end times, the mother will give birth to her mistress.

صدق رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم.

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