#i wonder if the original play was like that | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kookslastbutton · 2 days

Text

Those Eyes Chico ༓ myg (m) | chapter two

✑ Summary: As the new marketing director for Min Yoongi’s upcoming D-Day album & tour, you’re expected to bring your expertise to the table. This shouldn’t be a problem—you’re the best in the business and you’re used to drawing a strict line between your professional and personal life. But what happens when the lines you’ve fought to keep as separate blur for the first time?

pairing: idol!yoongi x plus size!poc!reader

genre/AU: angst, fluff, smut, slowburn, coworkers2friends2lovers, winter setting, forbidden love

word count: 6.1k+

warnings: This chapter in particular is written from Yoongi's perspective, oc is 28, Yoon is 30, oc is not originally from South Korea, oc has light brown eyes, swearing, mentions of alcohol consumption, smoking, mentions of body shaming by Hybe executive, bestie!tae is wonderful support 🥹, light fighting between members (literally crack), Namjoon has a little crush, Oc being a total boss at work bc she is amazing at her job, and cute & meaningful Yoon and OC interactions that make them finally start bonding (a little flirty too, hehe) 😉

now playing: Sweet Dreams by The Last Shadow Puppets

a/n: CHAPTR TWO IS HERE! GOD...the slow burn exists outside the series too with me not updating for two months. I'm sorry guys but TYSM for your patience! I'm VERY excited to release this chapter bc I think Yoon & Oc are super cute, hehe. Okay anyway, this series is dedicated to my wonderfully crazy friend and sorta beta, Gloom @theuselessdaydreamingidiot, and to all our fellow Yoon lovers bc we miss our sweet man SO MUCH 🥺 Enjoy! 🥰 Also huge thank you to @itaeewon for designing this beautiful series header! Love it!!

Series Masterlist | next chapter >>

Yoongi stands with his hands placed loosely on his hip, chest heaving as he attempts to catch his breath. The seven of them had been practicing choreography for their new RUN BTS song nonstop when Jimin called for a much-needed, fifteen-minute break. There’s a part of him that’s thanking the younger for it and another that’s wishing he hadn’t, as every moment left alone with his thoughts is spent decoding his last encounter with you at the cafeteria.

Why had you made such a beeline for the exit the moment he was waved over by his member?

You also completely ignored his attempts to greet you on your way out. He only stopped by the cafeteria to slip an orange in his pocket before returning to his studio. He didn’t mean to intrude or incite that you had to leave with his sudden presence.

Taehyung assured him that you merely left to tend to work matters, which he’d typically sum as hyper-fixation with one’s work as he’s prone to do the same, but this felt different at its core. Your behavior seemed more intentional than that. The last thing he wants to do is misread the whole situation, but he must’ve done or said something to cause your uneasiness.

“Hyung, how did the album meeting go this morning?” A clear voice comes from Yoongi's left as his fellow band member, Namjoon, strides next to him, water bottle clenched in his fist. Like himself, large droplets of sweat dots around the man’s brow. The minor interruption shakes Yoongi out of his slightly dazed state.

“Went well.” He takes a big swish of his own water before screwing the cap back on. “We reviewed everything in three hours and the album looks better than I anticipated. There are a couple of promotional strategies that still need finalizing, but I’m pretty confident about it overall.”

“That’s great, man. __-nim’s been doing good work with TXT for the last few years, so she’s definitely suited for the job. I thought about requesting her help to promote Indigo but the timing of it all didn’t work.” Namjoon’s voice drops an octave at the last part, as if remorseful for more than a missed professional opportunity.

“Ah, maybe your next album hyung,” Jimin suddenly chimes in, slapping the taller man on the shoulder from the side. “I have a feeling you and __-nim would work well together. Think about it, you’re both natural born leaders and you’re smart too. I bet __ -nim has as high of an IQ as you.”

Namjoon’s cheeks flush with the faintest tint of rose as Jimin flashes a knowingly cheeky grin. Yoongi, of course, witnesses the entire exchange, the slightest part of him feeling uprooted by the thought of his band member and new marketing manager suddenly hitting it off. He decides not to comment on the matter, choosing to remain in ignorance instead. This is all speculation, right?

Now that they’re all on the subject of his album though, it gets him thinking that maybe he’s been too narrow viewed regarding the reason for your off putting behavior at lunch.

D-Day’s release has become a consuming priority lately, with everyone involved worked to the bone. Aside from himself, you’ve been bearing the brunt of it. He’s appreciative of course, considering the album holds a deep sense of meaning to him, and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want it to be perfect. A little pushback during the first proposal is natural, yet he did get more resistant toward ideas during this morning’s meeting than anticipated. Perhaps some of his nitpicking was unnecessary, adding to your already heavy load.

Yoongi’s head feels worse the longer he entertains the possibility. He doesn’t want to make the first time working together a complete whirlwind, especially this early. A strong, healthy partnership starts with trust, safety, and mutual respect. The same philosophy can be applied to relationships of varying natures. That reminds him—since when did Taehyung and you become so close? He’s been ruminating over it all afternoon, like a jigsaw puzzle he can’t solve.

It’s odd how little he knows.

“I heard someone mention __-nim over here. I want in.” A small grumble leaves Yoongi’s lips as Jungkook pushes next to him, displeased by how tiny his space bubble has gotten due to the huddle his members have formed around him. Just why the hell is everyone so interested in his new marketing director? That's what he wants to know.

“Can you introduce me to her sometime hyung?" Jungkook pleads. "I’m thinking about releasing an album in the next year and it’d be great if you could hook us up…yknow?”

Oh, Yoongi knows. He knows exactly what this young buck is insinuating, but it isn’t mating season yet and even if it were he will do no such thing as to “hook them up”. Besides, his conscience tells him that you wouldn't be interested in the company of a younger man anyway—not that your dating life is any of his business or anything.

“Get in line Jungkookie, behind Namjoon. He needs her for his album first.” Jimin squeezes down on Namjoon’s muscular shoulders with both hands, shaking him just enough to hype him up. His hands are removed seconds later when he’s told to knock it off.

“That’s enough about this, okay? I’m pretty sure Yoongi-hyung is the only one who actually needs __-nim right now because, in case you dumbasses have forgotten, D-Day is set to release in April,” Namjoon scolds the two with a commanding tone. Jungkook, per usual, remains persistent in his original request and keeps his full attention on Yoongi.

“Anyway hyung, as I was saying, I know your album takes priority so I’m in no hurry to meet her. I can be pretty patient as you know-“

“Heh, that’s a lie.”

“Shove it Jimin, no one’s talking to you.” Jungkook’s eyebrows scrunch together as Jimin snorts helplessly next to Namjoon.

“You shove it Kook,” Jimin counters. “And stop trying to date __-nim! Find your own woman!”

“I’m not trying to date her! She's my noona for gods sake! Do you think I’m oblivious to how the public reacts to idols dating? Also, __-nim is a Hybe employee, not an idol. I can only imagine the type of scandal the media would spin it as.”

“Right, we all know you actually just want to take her to your bed instead,” Jimin interrupts for the umpteenth time. “Our handsome leader, on the other hand, is interested in her professional abilities. We can learn a lot from him.”

“Why are you always trying to start a fight with me Jimin? Is it because I can take you, now that I've been building up more muscle?” Jungkook’s accusations earn him nothing more than a sea of eye-rolls until Jimin lunges himself towards him, puffing out his chest the best he can to size him up.

Namjoon rubs his face with a hand, a clear visual display of his exhaustion. He’s been moderating these stupid squabbles for nine years now. “Alright very mature, biggest boy band in the world and this is what it’s come to? Amazing, congrats to everyone for winning the award for most-”

“Woah, woah, woah,” Seokjin interjects, effortlessly shouting over everyone while waving his hands. “My brothers…why are we fighting over here like a couple of peacocks? We are all beautiful in our own, individual ways. Mine, for example, is my handsome face.”

“For the love of god hyung, we’re trying to settle something. Go take your inspirational pep talk elsewhere!” Jungkook bends his knees, swooping down to throw Jimin over his shoulder but he misses when the man starts tickling him ruthlessly.

“St-ah-stop it Jimin!"

“You stop it, you frickin’ brat! Trying to take advantage of our hyungs for your own selfish gain.” Jimin then slaps Jungkook on the ass which does not go unappreciated as Hoseok cackles from the other side of the room. Up until this point, he’s been scrolling on his phone, completely unbothered by the chaos. As Hoseok nears the action, Jungkook delivers a swift kick to Jimin’s rear end.

“Ow, what the fuck Kook?!” Jimin tries soothing the sting by massaging it with his hands. “You little prick!”

“Oh come on, I barely hit you. Gaining sympathy points won’t help this time, plus I see you trying to hide a grin. You think this shit is funny. You’re sick you know that?”

Jimin makes a move to return the kick to his youngest member but ends up hitting a far taller, and leaner subject instead. Taehyung, who just returned from the bathroom, throws a hand over his abdomen and grunts from the sudden impact.

“What is—shit Jimin that really hurt!” Taehyung’s baritone voice echoes off the walls as he winces from the pain. He takes a few deep breaths, then viciously eyes the two brawlers followed by the rest of the room. “What the hell is going on? I heard you all talking about __-nim from the hallway. Yoongi-hyung here is trying to kick off his album and tour, which we are supposed to be celebrating over drinks this Friday, but here you are arguing with each other and who has the biggest dick. Well, you can all put it away because as __-nim’s best friend, and number one wingman, only I’m allowed to set her up with someone and it won’t be with any of you! Sorry hyung…” he looks at Namjoon who appears to have brushed the comment off.

As soon as Taehyung ceases his mini-speech, eery silence sets in. Hoseok is the first to dare say a word.

“Uh, so what’s this about being her best friend Tae?”

“Yeah, I had no idea either.” Jimin quirks his head to the side, awaiting the details.

“Same,” Namjoon adds in a short breath.

“What happened to us, man?” Jungkook pouts at Taehyung, a total 180 from moments ago when he was in an unsolicited sparring match with Jimin. “You used to share everything with me. Now you’re holding out on me. Since when did you and __-nim start hanging out?”

Yoongi’s ears perk up for the first time since all the commotion began, curious to hear Taehyung’s response. He only recently discovered the blossoming friendship hours ago and even then, it was a brief inside look.

“I didn’t think to mention it but yeah, we started talking since her first day at Hybe. I bumped into her on the way into work, early morning for both of us. I expected her to be a bit on the reserved side, considering she was a new hire, but she was quite friendly. The more we talked, the more I felt like I knew her as if a childhood best friend I’d reconnected with.” Pausing, he wets his lips before continuing. “We share a lot of our meals together now, like our lunches during the weekday. Her food tastes amazing by the way. I think she missed her calling as a chef but it’s more than food— it’s a love language, a labor of love.”

“Wow, you two sure are connected,” Hoseok speaks first again, seeing the rest of his members working to process the new bit of info.

“Platonically, yes.”

“This’ll be good for Yoongi-hyung and his album then! No bad blood exists here!” Hoseok shifts his gaze between Taehyung and Yoongi, pleased with the outcome. The older of the two remains speechless, yet it’s far from a dazed expression. Yoongi is instead deep in thought, the wheels turning in his head.

So maybe it’s true that birds of a feather flock together, he hums to himself. The two of you seem to be social butterflies with a vase full of commonalities. He, on the other hand, prefers his solitude. That’s not to say he’s a hermit or anything though. Hybe hosts a company-wide New Year’s Eve party every single year and he’s made his best effort to attend them all. He mainly mingles with his members, but he still makes sure to small talk with other coworkers. Come to think of it, did he even see you at last year’s New Year’s Eve party?

He can’t remember much from the night except Seokjin scolding him for not wishing him a happy birthday the minute the clock struck midnight. He was a bit tipsy at that point. Taehyung disappeared soon after to make his usual rounds, stopping to chat with everyone in his path. Maybe he took off to talk to you during that time.

Okay, he really needs to stop thinking about you.

"Just to confirm, is everyone still on for Friday night to celebrate D-Day?" Jimin pipes. "I booked us a good place to have some food and drinks.

Taehyung nods, "I am, as long as it's not the same place we saw our CFO and his much younger date feeding each other. I couldn't eat for the rest of that night."

Jungkook fakes a gag before replying. "I'm sorry but does anyone know how is he still working here? Guy creeps me out."

"I swear, I couldn't agree more. Just yesterday he made an egregiously body-shaming comment toward __-nim to someone else on the board. She kept a brave front when she told me, but I'm damn tempted to get him removed from his position myself!" Taehyung's nostrils flare as he shares his frustration, fingers digging into his hips.

Yoongi takes a final chug of his water before abruptly tossing the bottle on the floor. A sharp crack resounds through the space, instantly commanding the authority of the room. “Fifteen minutes is over,” he gruffs. “It might be twenty minutes with all the bickering earlier. We don't have time to be talking about this anymore.”

“Come on now," Hoseok says. "Didn't you hear what Taehyung said? Our CFO really is a class-A jerk. I feel so bad that __-nim has to put up with his bullshit, she doesn't deserve it." His eyes frantically search the room, hoping to rally support.

"Don't worry about that asshole," Yoongi assures, "I'll handle it." He strides over to his choreographed position on the dance floor as if a leader in his own right, the rest of the members following in his steps.

"Just don't kill him, hyung," Namjoon says, resting a hand on the older's shoulder from behind. Yoongi merely snorts lightly in reply.

Yoongi is dead tired, his feet feeling heavier the minute he stands from his studio chair. He could have left hours ago, but here it is nearly 9:30 at night, and he's only just leaving the office.

As he shuffles down the hallway towards the elevator, he notices the eerie silence. It's thick, almost palpable. There's not a soul left in the building this late at night. When the elevator doors open, he leans casually against the metal rail, closes his eyes, and mentally retraces his day.

Overall, it was a decent day, he thinks, productive at best. Skipping dinner to work on his album tracks was an easy decision, but he might be paying for it now given the intense growling of his stomach. Despite his songs being considered perfect by his members, he can't help but tweak each one a final time. It's as if his gut tells him there's still a piece missing from the whole.

All at once, the elevator comes to a sudden stop. Yoongi's eyes shoot open, anticipation flooding his senses. Is someone still here? He listens intently, straining to hear any sound over the faint hum of the elevator. After a few moments that feel like an eternity, the elevator doors slide open to reveal an empty, dimly lit hallway. It's the 16th floor. He hesitates for a second, peering into the shadows, but there’s no sign of anyone. Strange.

Just as the elevator doors begin to close, Yoongi hears a distant, unmistakable voice. "Please hold the door!" you plead, your voice strained with urgency. He responds immediately, stretching out an arm to block the door. "Thank you so much," you say, slipping in beside him, your bag thrown over your shoulder.

Yoongi watches as you enter, curiosity in his eyes. It seems you were of like mind tonight, working late and likely burdened by the extra work he caused for you. The feeling of tension is as clear as it was yesterday, lingering as a reminder of the unspoken discomfort between you both.

But then again, there's that issue Taehyung mentioned, looming in his thoughts. He hadn't realized you overheard the horrendous comment his CFO made about you. No wonder you hurried away from him like a bat out of hell yesterday; you knew he knew. He wouldn't dare shine a light on the situation and risk embarrassing you further; no one needs to relive such a belittling experience. Yet, he's wrestling with the right words to say.

"Heading home, Min PD-nim?" You surprise him by speaking first, voice firm with a touch of gentleness.

Yoongi allows a faint smile to tug at the corners of his lips, hoping it'll relieve some tension. "I am, it's been quite a day. What about you?"

You nod, shifting the bag on your shoulder. "Same here. Just had to wrap up a few things before heading out."

He hesitates for a moment, noting how you speak as if it were only a few minutes past five or six in the evening. "I understand. I was working in my studio up until now. I should be back up there tomorrow too," he says, then chuckles lightly, "Sometimes I feel like I should just live up there."

You return the subtle laugh and smile softly at him, your light brown eyes catching his dark ones. It feels like the same prolonged gaze you shared upon first meeting, yet now, it's somehow become easier; perhaps a hint of familiarity.

"By the way," he continues, seizing the opportunity, "feel free to call me Yoongi-ssi. I'm not that formal in case you didn't know." He playfully gestures to his casual attire; tan cargo pants, grey plaid button-down, and sneakers.

You seem hesitant towards the request at first, evident from your delayed response. "Are you sure?" you choke. "I don't want to over step my boundaries."

"There's no need to worry about that," he assures. "We're on equal level aren't we? If we're going to be working side by side for the next eight months give or take, I want us to feel comfortable with each other. Please, call me Yoongi-ssi."

"Okay, I might need some time to get used to that," you say, head nodding, "I'll try calling you Yoongi-ssi from now on."

"There's one other thing too," he pauses, "since we'll be working on D-Day's promotion from start to finish, I'll have many of my own opinions. It's a natural instinct for me, but I don't want to be a hinderance. I don't want anyone else giving you issues either, so I'd like to hear your full thoughts on matters, especially when it comes to important decisions."

"That means a lot Yoongi-ssi, thank you. I'm very grateful that you'd allow me to be a part of this and I'd very much like us to have an equal partnership. This is your album though, so I want to make sure it gets the recognition it deserves in the way you'd prefer."

Yoongi glances at the floor numbers displayed to the right of the elevator doors. Any second now and you'll reach the lobby. He wouldn't mind talking longer, but letting you both get a decent night's sleep is the far better idea at this point.

"I trust that D-Day is in the right hands with you, __ssi," he replies. "It's why I recommended that we work together to promote it in the first place. Bang PD was also confident in the idea. We don't doubt your expertise for a second." He pauses when the elevator doors slide open and allows you to be the first to exit. "Have a good night, okay?"

For the first time, you reciprocate the wish with a full, illuminating smile. It's not a professional one, Yoongi notes, its a real one—as genuine and sincere as his words. He takes it as a sign that the tides may finally be turning for the better. "You too," he hears you say before you push through the large revolving doors and step into the cool night air.

In the evenings that follow, Yoongi finds himself back in his studio as promised, a glass of whiskey in hand. He ultimately decided that if he was going to be here until all hours of the night, he might as well have a cold beverage to keep him company.

As he leans back in his chair, swirling the dark amber liquor in his glass, his mind inadvertently wanders to you. Were you downstairs again? Were you here with him? It would seem that given your unexpected late-night encounter in the elevator, the validity of the idea wouldn't be all that wild or far-fetched.

With each passing minute, as the clock inches closer to the late hours, he finds himself circling back to the same thought. It's as if the possibility of running into you has become a highlight of his night.

Just then, a deep and familiar voice interrupts. "Burning the midnight oil again, hyung?"

Startled, Yoongi looks up to see Taehyung standing in the doorway, a sympathetic smile on his face. Despite it being almost 9 at night, his younger member is nothing short of flawless in appearance.

"Yeah, working on my tracks," Yoongi replies, offering a small smile in return. "What are you doing here?"

Taehyung steps further into the room, hand tucked in his pocket. "I wanted to stay late to keep __-nim company, but I'm not sure how much longer she plans on staying tonight. I was on my way out when I figured I'd stop by to see you too."

"Well, thanks for thinking of me. Want a drink?" He offers, nodding towards the nearby whiskey bottle.

"No, thanks," Taehyung declines politely, shaking his head. "I'll let you enjoy your whiskey in peace. Although, __-nim might take you up on that same offer one of these days. She has a strong taste for it, as you do. Anyway, I'm heading out. Don't overdo it with your music, hyung, they're already perfect."

Once Taehyung leaves the studio, Yoongi's previous string of thoughts return to him tenfold.

So you really are here, he muses, and you happen to like the same throat-burning alcohol. Should he venture downstairs and offer a drink? No, that would probably be too much, and he wouldn't want to interrupt you. Maybe if Taehyung were accompanying him, but not alone; he doesn't share enough rapport with you to merit such a spontaneous drop-in yet.

No, he takes another sip of his whiskey, he'll see you tomorrow morning instead; during your morning meeting. But that gets him thinking—he's still yet to decide on whether or not he'll make an appearance on Fallon's show. He’d done it with his members numerous times, but this would be the first time doing it alone. His album would indeed benefit from the exposure, though.

"Damn it," he curses, raising from his seat. "I work my ass off. I work my ass off for it all!" He then sits back down, finishing off the rest of his whiskey in one gulp, the burn soothing his frustration momentarily. With a resigned sigh, he turns his attention back to his music. "Damn it, I guess I'll do it."

If it weren't for his phone notification reminding him of his 10 am meeting on Friday, Yoongi would have missed it entirely. Normally, he never forgets important events, but several late nights in the studio had predictably caught up with him. He feels extremely sleep-deprived today, his memory more prone to blanking than usual. Waking up with a throbbing headache at 5 am, which hasn't dimmed in the slightest, doesn’t help either. Nonetheless, with only ten minutes to spare, Yoongi has no choice but to pull himself together and head downstairs to the conference room.

"Good morning, Min PD-nim," you greet him as he walks through the door. "We're about to start."

Yoongi drags out a chair and takes a seat. You look nice today, he notes quietly to himself. He makes sure to send a small smile your way before returning the warm greeting. "Good morning __-ssi," he says. "I told you we can speak informally didn't I?"

He waits for your response, easily tuning out the startled reactions from the rest of the team. Most high-ranking officials in the organization expected to be addressed formally by those in lower positions, but here he was, openly requesting you to speak as equals. It was almost unheard of during work hours. He was Min Yoongi, after all.

"Right, of course," you reply, "You'll have to excuse me, Yoongi-ssi. It slipped my mind for a moment."

Yoongi watches as you shuffle a few papers in your hand before continuing. "To get us started, I thought we'd discuss the decision to schedule a spot on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Will we be proceeding with this?"

"After mauling it over I think it's a good idea for the album. Do we have an idea of when this would happen?"

"Ideally after the album releases and around the time the U.S. tour begins April 26th. I say we aim for early May. Given Fallon's show's high demand, we'll need to get a jump on this as soon as we can." You shift your attention to your digital marketing and promotions team. "So-hyun, can you reach out to the producers and see what strings we can pull?"

She nods, scribbling a quick note on her writing pad. "We'll reach out today. I'll let you know as soon as we get a response."

"Excellent, thank you. I'm glad to hear you're on board with this Yoongi-ssi. It'll be a great way to promote D-Day and attract a global audience. The more smartly we utilize our resources, the better your album will be positioned in the current market." You take a brief pause to flip through your notes again. "Speaking of resources, we'll need to start booking magazine shoots and interviews. I'm proposing we run cover pages with Marie Claire Korea and Vogue Japan."

Yoongi would be taken aback by the flood of ideas and schedules you're firing at him, all within the first fifteen minutes, if he weren't already aware of your level of competency. This is exactly why he chose you, he hums to himself, your preparedness is impressive, but not surprising.

"I presume this will take place next year?" he asks. "During their spring issues?"

"Absolutely. We'll submit inquiries soon to get the ball rolling, but having the shoots completed now would be premature. Plus, it'll take some time before there are any openings with the companies. I think we should be consistent with tour dates and have Marie Claire go out in May and Vogue ready in August of next year."

"Okay, I'm fine with all that but we'll need to have something exciting released now, don't we? I know I start my weekly lives tonight, but shouldn't there be something more we can do?"

"I agree," you reply. "That's why I wanted to propose a brand new idea that came to me a couple of nights ago while I was drafting promotional content. Anytime idols release a new album or music, it gets published on YouTube, right?"

He nods, curious on where you're heading. "Right."

"Why don't we start a talk show with you as the host Yoongi-ssi? It can allow your fans to see another side of you, as well as the general public. We can invite your BTS members as guests where you can discuss music or past challenges that you've had to overcome—the choice is yours. To make it more interesting for viewers, you can have these frank conversations over a glass of whiskey or soju."

"I like the idea," he says, weighing it in his mind. "What would the timeline look like for this?"

"If we move forward with the idea, I suggest December 5th and we continue it for a max of two months. I know that only leaves us with just under two weeks to get started, but creating the set shouldn't take more an a day or a day and a half. We can also easily shoot a 30 to 60-minute video in an afternoon and publish it on YouTube the following week. Of course, a preview of the show will need to go out beforehand."

"Would we be able to invite other guests to the show? Outside of my members, I mean."

"Yes, feel free to invite whoever you'd like. We can start with the member for the first several episodes but ultimately, welcoming a variety of guests from the same or differing industries would be the goal."

"If I may." A member of the social media team suddenly joins the discussion, "I think Kim Namjoon-nim might be a good person to feature first since Indigo releases December 2nd."

Yoongi nods in agreement. "I can ask him."

"That would be fantastic, actually. If his availability is limited, we could have him guest star for the second or third episode instead," you add. "Hoseok released Jack in the Box this summer so we could have him be the first guest as well."

"Do we have a name yet?"

"Suchwita," you answer without hesitation. "It's a play on words with Daechwita."

"Suchwita..." Yoongi repeats, "Time to get drunk." He chuckles at the last few words, amusing the room, but you remain contemplative.

"How about Suchwita...time to drink with Suga, instead? It's simple and has a slight whimsical nature."

"Sure, let's use that," he answers, noticing that you've already begun jotting down the idea. "Yours is better."

Despite the adrenaline from the productive meeting with you and your team, Yoongi still feels the weight of his sleepless nights bearing down on him. His headache remains relentless and he is in dire need of a moment to himself. Once the team disperses, he slips his phone into his pocket and makes his way outside. The crisp, early morning air should offer him some relief, along with the pack of cigarettes tucked in his pocket.

When he reaches the building's designated smoking area, Yoongi takes out a cigarette and lights it, taking a deep drag as he leans against the cool brick wall. As he exhales, watching the smoke dissipate into the clear sky, his thoughts drift back to the meeting. The idea of hosting a talk show, "Suchwita...time to drink with Suga," still lingers in his mind. It’s an intriguing concept, and he can already envision the relaxed, candid conversations that could come from it.

His thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the sound of footsteps crunching on the ground nearby.

"Oh, Yoongi-ssi," you say with alarm, obviously startled by his presence. "I didn't mean to interrupt you. I'll come back lat-"

"There's no need for that. Join me if you'd like." Yoongi watches as you hesitate to accept his offer, your feet already positioned to head back inside the building. "Seriously, there's plenty of room, and no matter what they'll tell you, I don't bite."

He allows himself to smirk as you carefully move beside him, only stopping when there is at least two feet of space between you both.

"Thanks," you say, pulling out your own pack of cigarettes and lighting one. "I needed a break too."

"Rough morning?"

"Just busy," you reply, leaning against the wall next to him. "But the meeting went well. We should be able to get the ball rolling now that we have a more finalized plan. I'm glad you liked the idea of starting Suchwita, by the way."

"I do," Yoongi says, nodding. "It has a lot of potential and I'm sure Namjoon will be more than happy to help us out. He's a natural at this kind of stuff. I guess it's why he's our band leader."

"You know you're good at all of this too, don't you, Yoongi-ssi?" You pause, taking a puff of your cigarette. "Even when you have a lot on your mind and a packed schedule, you have a knack for making people feel at ease. It's why I think producing Suchwita will be such a great way to connect with fans and other artists—you'll be the host."

He chuckles, appreciative of the remark. "You really think that? That I make people feel at ease? It's not what a lot of people assume."

"Nah," you reply, tilting your head up toward the clouds. "They're just on the outside looking in. Those who know you, who are around you and talk to you, will agree that you're a pretty calming presence."

"Well, I think we're not so different then." Yoongi shifts his eyes to your face, still looking up at the sky, and smiles softly. "So, what made you come to BigHit? Didn't you say you worked for Atlantic Records? That's a pretty good gig."

"Yeah, it was. I learned a lot there, and man, I was thrilled when I got offered the job as a brand manager. I've always loved music, ever since I was a kid. I could connect so intimately with the lyrics. Music is one of the few things that could soothe me during rough times, and it still does today. I'm sure you can understand."

Yoongi nods, intent on listening to your every word, intrigued by your story.

"Anyway, sorry about getting long-winded here" you chuckle. "I ultimately decided to move on when Bang PD reached out and offered me the marketing manager position for TXT. It gave me the chance to be a more integral part of bringing music to individuals who need it most. It's like we say, 'music for art and healing.' I'd never had the opportunity to manage a completely new set of musicians before either, let alone a group. Plus, being on the global marketing team? I couldn't turn it down."

"It makes sense why you joined us then, and I have to say, it's a blessing you did too. Music is a way of communication for me, a way I can best express my story. That includes my past, present, and hopefully future. After hearing all you shared, I don't think there's anyone else I'd trust with handling my album promos." Yoongi pauses a moment, unsure if he should ask the next thing on his mind. "How come we never met before? I mean really meet and talk?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure myself. But things have a way of falling into place when the time is right, I suppose." You're now looking at him, the intensity of your gaze mirrors his own. A gentle breeze tousles a few strands of your hair and for a split moment, Yoongi begins to understand what Taehyung meant earlier when he said it feels like he's known you his whole life, like a childhood friend he'd reconnected with. While it may not be to that extent for himself, there's a comforting warmth emanating from you that leaves him feeling strangely tranquil.

"Given the circumstances, I feel like we should have at least met through Taehyung by now," he slips out. "Or even at a company-sponsored event."

"Why, do you like me that much, Yoongi-ssi? After five days of working together?" Your playful tease catches him off guard, revealing a side of you he hadn't seen before. It's kind of cute-wait, what?

"I-"

"Sorry," you quickly interject, feeling the need to backtrack. "I shouldn't have said it like that."

"Don't worry, there's no need for apologies. And to answer your question, I like you enough." He hopes you can hear the tease in his own tone as he responds.

You both lapse into a comfortable silence for the next few minutes, the only sounds being the distant hum of traffic and the occasional chirp of a bird. He finds all of it soothing in a way he can't quite explain.

After a few minutes, you turn to him, your expression thoughtful. "You know, if you ever need to talk or just need a break, I'm here. We're teammates now."

Yoongi looks at you, his tired eyes softening with gratitude. "Thanks, __-ssi."

You give him a reassuring smile before pushing off the wall. "I'll let you finish your cigarette. See you later? And by later, I likely mean at 9 or 10 pm in our company elevator."

"Yeah, see you later," he laughs, watching as you walk back toward the building. He takes one last inhale, extinguishing the cigarette and letting the remaining smoke escape his lips slowly.

Yeah, he likes you just enough.

a/n: Hope you enjoyed it! Lmk what you think 🥰

Tags:

@jksjx @junecat18 @babystarcandyjk97 @mygssibal @unoriginal-username15432 @vikibangtann @coffeedepressionsoup @jjkluver7 @p34rluv @tannieflix @kingofbodyrolls @butterymin @waitaminswife @mygssibal @rkivved-girl @parapiop7 @betysotelo18 @mimisweaterpaws @wobblewobble822 @a-gayish-unicorn @constancelayon @idkreallys-blog @juju-227592 @urlovelily @itsmina29 @jub-jub @cerulean1riz @rinkud

Masterlist | Requests: closed | Taglist | Fic Recs

no reposting, copying, or translating my work– © kookslastbutton

#yoongi angst #yoongi fluff #yoongi smut #yoongi x reader #yoongi fanfic #bts fanfics #bts fanfic #bts angst #bts fluff #bts smut #bts scenarios #fic:thoseeyeschico #kookslastbutton

122 notes · View notes

hometoursandotherstuff · 2 days

Text

This would be a hard NO for me. Every damned time you have to go out, you need to get in the boat and go across?

So, this is also your land, separated by just enough water to make it crazy. Secure the boat and climb the ladder. That's your shed and driveway. Could this be any more inconvenient? Say you need a new fridge. Do the delivery men put it in the boat and the rest is your problem?

Then you sail across the way back to your dock, that's falling apart. Can, you imagine if you just have to pop out for something, or go for a pizza?

Your cute home. Can you imagine doing this everyday to go to work, get the kids to school? Skate across when it freezes. This is a 1987 build in Amityville, NY, famous for the Amityville Horror. Has 3bds, 2ba, asking $535K. Well, let's go inside.

The owners have already moved out. Wonder how that went. They left the fridge, of course, and must've given up when it came to these chairs and rug. So the living room is nice. Funny, this is the only glimpse of the kitchen and the fridge is in the living room. I suspect foul play.

Has doors to the deck.

Up on the 2nd level there's an open room like a loft. Has a nice skylight. Is that a dehumidifier they left?

This bedroom has original flooring.

This one also has an original floor and a view of the deck. House is plain, I wish it had more charm.

Bath #1. What is the photographer standing on?

Bath #2 is a shower room. Where does the waste go, into the river?

If there's one thing this house has, it's decks. The one out front is like a huge covered porch.

In the back, this one has a picnic table.

There's room on the island for a nice yard.

This looks like a corner table for one. Like a writing desk or a place to set up an easel.

Now, here we are across the river where you keep your vehicles which must include a boat and a car. It's so close, though, I would get a jet ski just to get across.

Remember, this land comes with it, so the owner has a ladder, shed, and driveway. I guess you can't built a bridge, b/c the neighbors must have boats that need to get thru. How inconvenient. But, if you have the money, it would be a great summer home.

https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/ny/amityville/63-riverside-ave/pid_58789263/

#island homes #unsusual homes #unique homes #houses #house tours #home tour

143 notes · View notes

spidey-strange · 2 days

Text

Romeo, Romeo...

I am now living in a post Romeo & Juliet world. It might well be the only time I get to see it, but honestly what I saw on Saturday is going to stay with me forever. I wanted to put it down into words - my review of this play.

The first part of the experience is the music. We were in the bar and this repetitive rumble sound played over the tannoy, signalling that we were being called to Verona. We took our seats and we waited, all while more and more haze appeared across the sparsely-set stage and the music bore deep into my soul, gnarling and industrial, giving a sense of dystopian doom and foreboding. By the time the lights went out and the video screen showed 1597 in bright red lettering, I was already feeling a nervous nausea and an elevated heart rate.

This play is asking you to pretend, as much as they are. There is no set. There are no props. The actors stand like statues, dotted around, sometimes deep into the back of the stage as if ghostly apparitions. Sometimes the actors talk freely, other times they take their place behind mic stands as if part of a debating society. What happens on stage is coupled with video footage of other actors scattered around the bowels of the theatre, in the narrow backstage corridors, or even the theatre bar (and, of course, the roof). The fourth-wall breaks that often punctuate the end of these short video pieces eally pierce into your soul, looming over you, much like the mood of this whole production.

An example - as Mercutio lay dying, the camera is right in his face so you get the full pain and rage of him as he screams "a plague upon both your houses" and takes his final breaths. All the while, Romeo stands metres away, covered in blood, seething with unbridled rage, tears mixing with the blood of his friend.

The interval moment that follows literally made everyone gasp, a jumpscare that absolutely warrants the gravity of the moment. I won't say more because if there's even a 0.1% chance of you seeing it I don't want it ruined.

The second act of this play is decidedly quieter than the first. Clandestine conversations, whispers between characters, the comedy, gone. The deaths of Thibault and Mercutio loom large as the reality of the consequences kick in. Juliet remains defiant to the last - this is a Juliet who really knows what she wants (supported by Nurse, who is more like an older sister character full of kindness and friendly age-appropriate advice). As the end draws near, and the inevitability of what's about to happen (let's face it, we've all studied it at school, we know what happens!) becomes apparent, the silence in the theatre speaks volumes.

This production challenges you to see the traditional story through a far darker lens, and the blank spaces leave room for the oppressive mood and music to thrive and grow. It asks you to find answers in the quiet as much as the loud. It might be the best known love story of all time but the added weight of the staging proves everything hangs on the final line: "For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo."

Now. Acting. And oh boy was there acting. I'm going to start with Mercutio (Joshua-Alexander Williams) and Paris (Daniel Quinn-Toye) - two actors who are in their first professional production. What pressure, and how they dealt with it. Particularly Joshua-Alexander! I thought Tomiwa Edun, who played Capulet, Juliet's father, was immense - so sinister in his delivery, he had me convinced he was head of a family and of a gang empire. And Freema Agyeman as Nurse was wonderful, as I said earlier, giving this big sister energy and providing delighful lighter moments against the shade. HUGE mention to Nima Taleghani who not only was an excellent Benvolio but also edited the original text to make it a 1hr 45 version that was powerful and punchy.

Now, our main stars. Francesca Amewudah-Rivers as Juliet was incredible. She was headstrong, she was poised, she was dynamic and still at the same time. She portrayed a Juliet desperate to be free from the confines of her family, but clear that she knew what she wanted from the love (and escape) she sought. The second act belonged to her, her stillness lingering.

And the reason I fought for a ticket, Tom Holland. I've seen him at film premieres and press events, and twice playing golf, but the opportunity to see him do what (as fans) we all know to be his true calling, was irresistible. And oh my God. Honestly I was blown away by his portrayal. Brooding, emotional, at times so quiet you had to strain to hear his lament. And then rage, euphoria, shyness, a fumbling lovesick idiot. Throughout the production he provides so much range, but also so much depth, it's impossible not to feel everything he does.

To see him, clearly in his element, providing a soul to Romeo that I've never felt before - I couldn't be prouder as a fan. For too long he has been tarred with the brush that he is not a "serious actor". As fans we know that The Devil all the Time, Cherry, and The Crowded Room are proof otherwise. This should be the moment the world realises he is INCREDIBLE, to be taken seriously, to be given the respect he is long overdue.

I wish beyond words that I get to see this play again. I hope at the very least it gets an NT live screening so that fans around the world get to witness this amazing, unique, innovative production.

Violent delights indeed have violent ends.

#tom holland #spoilers #romeo and juliet #romeo montague #jamie lloyd #theatre #west end #shakespeare #francesca amewudah rivers #freema agyeman

106 notes · View notes

mazey-phaedra-enjoyer · 1 day

Text

I can't stand the way a section of the d20 fandom talks about the rat grinders. It's important to mention it's still pretty unclear how the rat grinders exactly died. We don't know where they were killed, if they were alone or if porter or other authority figures were involved, if it was a mishap in the mountains of chaos or not like we just don't know enough to make a lot of these hard and fast judgements about their motives and actions. A lot of people seem to think that they all chose it for some reason or that kipperlily sacrificed them or whatever but there's been next to no definitive canon evidence that the original rat grinders deaths were somehow initiated on any one of their member's part. Like in the comments of a really good frostkettle artwork that was of lucy comforting an angry-crying kipperlily someone was like "aNd tHeN sHe bRuTalLy KilLeD her!!!1!1!1!!" which first of all stfu don't comment stuff like that under other people's art and keep it to yourself and second THERE'S LITERALLY NO TEXTUAL EVIDENCE FOR THIS. People, I think somewhat understandably from looking at it from a very surface level, look at kipperlily's killing of buddy wonder if she played a more active role, but in jawbone's case files it pretty clearly states there was a night and day sudden transition from kipperlily expressing anger over some admittedly pretty childish things to genuine homicidal rage after something in sophomore year which doesn't allign with ideas of kipperlily orchestrating all their deaths in some elaborate machiavellian scheme from the very beginning. Anyways the rat grinders are really tragic and compelling characters that don't deserve being cursed to literal eternal damnation as 17 year olds after being brutally murdered by a (formerly) nameless god of rage and given the choice between oblivion with no afterlife and being resurrcted as servants of it and they way the some of the fandom talks about them (and even the intrepid heroes makes tbh) makes me want to pull my hair out

#d20 fantasy high #d20 fhjy #dimension 20 #fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #dimension 20 fhjy #dimension twenty #d20 #d20 fhjy spoilers

64 notes · View notes

sirenologyyy · 2 days

Text

FRAGILE !

୨ৎ summary : wherein singer!reader books her next role in the ballad of songbirds and snakes after starring in the third highest-grossing movie of all time called avatar: the way of water, and falls for the bad guy... of course

୨ৎ warnings : cussing, that's pretty much it HEHEHE

୨ৎ author's note : so uhhh hello I'm not dead!

yourusername

liked by tomblyth, rachelzegler, camilamorrone, phiasaban, jackchampion and 456,377 others

yourusername persian cat takes on the big apple ✨️

view comments

user1 THE EXCESSIVE CROISSANTS HELLO???

user2 NOBODY FUCKING MOVE.

user3 hmm who's that one guy we know that LOVES croissants

user4 omg I want one

user2 those croissants look so flaky and scrumptious though

user3 EVERYBODY CHEERED

user5 I can't believe they're out and about ugh my parents

user2 my heart is full

⤷ user6 our* parents

⤷ user5 oh shit my bad yall

user7 SO TOM TOOK THAT PICTURE????

user8 I think we can all agree he took this picture

user9 YALL IM GOING INSANE?????

user10 TWITTER IS A GREASEFIRE HELLO

user11 Y/N LOOKS SO CHEEKY IN THAT PIC SHE'S SO CUTEEEEE

user9 UGH THE LOVE OF MY LIFE

user12 I THINK IM HEAD OVER HEELS IN LOVE WITH Y/N M/N L/N

user10 the line starts behind @/tomblyth

rachelzegler ure such a cutie

⤷ yourusername nowhere near as you are though

⤷ rachelzegler oh STOP don't do this

user12 THAT'S MY WIFE YA'LL OH LORD

user13 SHE POSTED YALL SHE POSTED

user14 8 MINUTES AGO ITS CRIMINAL TO BE THIS EARLY OML

user15 ok y/n l/n coffee crisp enjoyer!?!

user16 were all the croissants in the photo devoured by tom blyth?

⤷ yourusername oh girl I had to tell him to slow it down 😭😭😭

⤷ tomblyth unbelievable you are

⤷ yourusername BWHAAHSHSHSAHAGSH

⤷ tomblyth you claimed you were too full from lunch when we went to go buy croissants and yet you stole mine after you asked for a bite, called me a sock sucker, and told me to buy another one?

⤷yourusername and out of the both of us who went to Julliard at a young age? Whose father is a television producer? Exactly.

⤷tomblyth this isn't over, you know

⤷yourusername oh i'm just getting started

user13 YOOOO WTF

user4 CLEARED.

user12 OH MY GOD???

user17 UHM???????????

user3 TOMY/N NATION RISE

user9 I'm shaking in my boots rn what is HAPPENING

user1 CHAT WHAT IS GOING AWN

user5 SOMEONE WAKE ME UP I MUST BE DREAMING

user10 if this is a dream I never wanna wake up

user12 we got Coriolanus Snow and Mira Sage's actors flirting in an Instagram section before gta6

user2 😭😭😭😭 PLEASE

user5 their pr agents must be having a field day

user9 oh I can't WAIT for their promos 😭😭😭

user1 the traffic light though wtf HAHAAHAHAAHAHAAH IM LOSING IT

user8 y/n can I get a hi

⤷yourusername hellooo

user8 I'LL TAKE IT

user18 she has calico critters too oh my god I can't with her I love her sm

user19 y/n marry me I BEG OF YOUUUUU

user20 the absolute love of my LIFE

user21 HELLO 9 MINUTES AGO????

user22 THE SCREAM I JUST SCRUMPT?????

user19 my roman empire I'm afraid

user22 y/n's smile in the second to the last pic oh I'm in love with her

user24 I want their entire banter tattooed on my forehead...

⤷ rachelzegler you and me both

yourusername & OfficeMagazine

liked by rachelzegler, tomblyth, jackchampion, mrsamclaflin and 137,879 others

OfficeMagazine with Y/N L/N in her self-proclaimed "punk-ballerina era" we slithered into her dm's to give us the biggest scoop yet about her upcoming film "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes", set decades before the original trilogy "The Hunger Games".

"It's so incredibly overwhelming and nervewracking to be diving headfirst into this universe to be completely transparent, which shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who grew up reading these books and having them be a ginormous part of our lives to being on set playing the role of one of the characters you've idolised since your teenage years up til today. It's absolutely surreal. Me alongside my wonderful and enormously talented co-stars have definitely got some very very big shoes to fill as everyone has these expectations coming in and eager to watch the film which is undoubtedly a labour of love. I've poured my heart and soul into Mira Sage Baird, so much so that I can confidently say that she is a part of me and that I am a part of her. I'm excited for everyone to fall a little bit more in love with her like I did."

view comments

user1 oh wow.

user2 we really lucked out with her 😭

user3 UHM MISS MA'AM THIS IS SO TOUCHING. I AM TOUCHED.

user5 HOW MANY LETTERS ARE THERE IN MIRA SAGE????

⤷user6 8!!!!!!!

⤷user7 ATEEEEEE

⤷user8 omg ATE!

⤷user9 8!!!!!

rachelzegler aww babie 🥹🥹🥹

⤷yourusername 😭❤️‍🩹💥

user10 the amount of love y/n has for mira sage is so overpowering its making me melt.

user11 AWWW SHE'S BEEN A MIRA SAGE BAIRD FAN SINCE SHE WAS LITTLE MY HEART CANNOT TAKE THISSSSSS

baileybass cannot waitttt 🫶🫶🫶

⤷yourusername me neither HAHAHA

user12 Y/N ONE CHANCE. PLEASE.

user13 she's so cutie patootie

user14 I LOVE YOU Y/N M/N L/N

⤷ user15 HELP ME NOT THE GOVERNMENT NAME AHHAGAAGABAHSHA

tomblyth ❤️❤️🪶

yourusername liked a message

rachelzegler 📸

yourusername just added to their story

slide 1: coffee tastes better when it's free! thank you @/tomblyth 🫶

slide 2: *insert madddd slurping sounds*

slide 3: <3

tomblyth reposted your story

tomblyth tagged you in his story

slide 1: your turn @/yourusername

slide 2: looks like miffy's in the lead @/yourusername

2 new messages from roach 🎀

taglist: @dylsvqid @callsignwidow @bairdz

#tbosas #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #tom blyth #the hunger games #tom blyth x fem!reader #tom blyth imagine #thg #laufey lin #coriolanus snow x oc #the ballad of songbirds and snakes soc med au #tom blyth x reader

44 notes · View notes

slackerlifewhere · 15 hours

Text

Cale does not know everything

Why did anyone think he did?

[Note: There will be SPOILERS about the first part of TCF so if you haven't finished the first part or you don't want spoilers, I suggest you don't continue. Thanks!]

When I first read the novel, the most common mistake new readers often make was they all thought that Cale is omniscient. Yeah, I saw the comments. There were a lot.

I think, once again, it's because of how in most KR novels and manhwa, the main character usually knows the whole story of a novel they read or a game they played before they transmigrate to another world. They don't have all the details but it's more than what Kim Rok Soo knows.

Because that's the thing. The difference is that Kim Rok Soo doesn't know the whole story. In fact, he only read up until five volumes of "The Birth of a Hero" before he transmigrated in another world.

He, like us, doesn't know how the story ends.

I might be getting repetitive but the reason why I love TCF is because the author, Yoo Ryeo Han, doesn't share everything to us right off the bat.

They never info dump us with the whole story about how OG Cale actually made a deal with the God of Death, about Kim Rok Soo's past as an ability user, about Choi Jung Soo, and about the existence of the White Star. Instead, all these plot points are gradually revealed later in the story.

And I honestly prefer it like this. This way, we can only guess what will happen next. It's not a boring story but a mysterious one because there's something we won't expect.

The story starts with Kim Rok Soo opening his eyes in another world.

We are never completely told what Kim Rok Soo read before he transmigrated. The most he tells us is a summary and a few details here and there at the start of the novel.

We only find out more by experiencing it through Cale's point of view. We read his thoughts about the novel. And we follow him in his journey around the Eastern and Western continents.

But as mentioned at the beginning, he doesn't know how The Birth of a Hero ends. His knowledge stops at the end of volume five. Everything else depends on him.

But even before the war happens, there are already some hints that Cale doesn't actually have all the information he needs. He is not fully equipped with everything about the book. He, like us, is in the dark about certain factors that can affect his goals.

Indestructible Shield

When the shield was first mentioned, Cale questioned why no one took it.

'No wonder nobody ended up taking control of it. But then why would the author mention something that could be useful but was never actually taken by anybody?’

- Chapter 11: Picked It Up

It's odd because it's found in the territory where Choi Han appears in the beginning of the story. Yet from volume one to volume five, not a single soul knew of its existence.

It's the first ancient power he gets that he finds out because he read the book and he's the only one who knows about it. He doesn't know why it's there nor does he question it any further. His only goal was to get it.

It's only when the Glutton Priestess told him about her past that he finally gets the bigger picture.

The fact that this tidbit was shrugged off by Cale, and probably some readers, as something unimportant only to find out later in the story about its huge connection to the original White Star is just insane. And it's the reason why the books he read aren't informative at all. Because why did it leave out this piece of information if they want him to use it to save their world?

He didn't even know a single thing about the current White Star at the start of the story and here is a random ancient power sitting prettily in the Henituse territory that actually has a connection to the same guy Cale Barrow wants to imitate. He was utterly clueless like the rest of us.

I'm not gonna lie, I was shaking my head by how dumbfounded I was when I first read the novel. I was questioning everything I read in the early chapters, thinking if there's something else that I didn't notice (there were a lot actually).

The fact that the author gives us only a little info about the tree where the shield was found and its connection to the other ancient powers only solidified my respect by how good the author is at hiding this plot until the big reveal.

The Wolf Tribe

‘The novel didn’t say which of the divine items they brought.’

If Cale knew what the divine item was, he would be able to get one step closer to the identity of the secret organization. Unfortunately, the novel only described how the Wolf Tribe became weak because of the divine item. He had no way to determine the identity of the secret organization.

- Chapter 32: You

When Cale sends Choi Han to find Rosalyn and Lock, Choi Han returns with Lock who was about to transform into his berserk mode.

Later, Choi Han explains what happened and Cale realizes that a lot of things changed compared to what happened in the book. For one, Lock did not hide and fought back against Arm. Another is instead of assassins, the ones that appeared are official members.

For some, including me, this can be excused because of Cale's actions. He's a new variable to the story and thus, he ends up changing a lot of scenarios that happened in the story.

But, thinking about it, this is the only thing that is completely different from what happened in the books. Everything else is the same aside from when Cale is actively doing something like becoming a guardian to three kids or getting the ancient powers that originally belongs to someone else. Unless Cale acts, nothing actually changes.

There's the bombing at the plaza that also changed but that can still be excused as Cale ruining Arm's movements early on and them revising their plans.

Lock however, is not influenced by Cale. He could've stayed hidden just like in the book but in this case, he didn't. Arm could've sent assassins but they didn't. There is no reason for them to change from assassins to official members. Plus, instead of killing all of them, the wolf children survived.

This is not because of Cale.

So...does that mean that the book he read is not completely reliable?

Pretty much, yeah. Which already answers the question if he knows everything like a cliche main character does. No, he doesn't know everything. And the books he read can be taken as a guidebook but an incomplete one with a few mistakes here and there.

Let me remind you that this happened before the war started and there's already something Cale doesn't know or expect.

[Side note: I only realized this whole bit about the Wolf Tribe while reading a freaking reaction fic. If I had not read that fic, I wouldn't even realize how weird this one is. Am I dumb? Don't answer that.]

White Star

Another reason why Cale is not omniscient even though he looks and acts like it, is because he didn't find out about the White Star until the war against Arm and the Indomitable Alliance.

This man is like a god to his followers and allies and not a single person in Cale's group and even outside of it knows about him. Not even Ron, who has his whole family annihilated and later loses his arm in the process, knows about him.

Again, the five volumes of The Birth of a Hero never mentions this elusive White Star. The only reason he knows about this guy is through interrogation and torture. So when he finally appears in the Mogoru Empire, all Cale felt was anger and fear.

Because this unexpected factor is dangerous.

Cale knows they're completely unprepared to face this new player in the game. Eruhaben, an ancient dragon, was getting his ass kicked by this man who suddenly appeared out of nowhere and the dragon even told them to run. What everyone considers a very strong existence in this world is telling them that there's no hope in defeating him.

And the most shocking out of all this is that Cale never expected how the White Star knows that Cale and Choi Han have their "time warped for them". He knows something about Cale just by looking at him.

So the books by this point are basically useless and he has to rely on himself and others to plan ahead of time. He works extremely hard for it.

He has to dig information using his Record to find out about White Star. He has to talk to the World Tree to get the weapon to use against the White Star. He has to talk to Sheritt to know more about the White Star and his curse. And he has to find out from OG Cale himself on how to finally kill the White Star.

It took the whole book to finally defeat him.

And none of these are mentioned in the books he read.

So Cale, in conclusion, does not know everything like what some readers once complained about. He has some pieces of the puzzle but it's like if he needs a hundred pieces to complete the puzzle and he only has ten, then he's never gonna complete it.

He knew about the first five volumes and the rest were just him and his allies' hard work. It's pretty much why he's so stressed in the whole book, zooming around the two continents just to look for the White Star's weakness while also juggling different problems like more wars or the God of Despair or finding the earth attribute the White Star needs.

So yeah. Don't judge a book by the first few chapters and expect to know everything.

end notes:

Alberu better give him his slacker life when this story ends.

Nelan Barrow and the God of Death really made him work for it.

I'm not gonna lie, I want someone (Cale) to kidnap Choi Jung Gun and interrogate him about why the heck he didn't explain the important bits in his "guidebook" and why the whole thing about the wolf tribe became different from what was written. He could've at least mentioned what the secret organization's name is but he left it to Cale instead. It's just the name, CJG. Why are you hiding it? Is Choi Han in the books really that slow or what? If you want someone to save your world, at least send more information like the name of the secret organization. You talked about the Indestructible Shield's location but can't spell Arm? Shame on you, CJG.

If it wasn't KRS that was transmigrated and it's just a random normal person, that person would've died even before meeting the White Star.

Or maybe Nelan Barrow just wants to be an author like Yoo Ryeo Han and be all mysterious about it.

#tcf #tcf cale #tcf manhwa #tcf novel #cale henituse #lcf cale #tcf cale henituse #lcf #lcf manhwa #lout of the count’s family #tcf choi han #choi han #lcf choi han #tcf white star #tcf lock

37 notes · View notes

sailforvalinor · 1 day

Text

After seeing this post I was struck with a vision of how a Star Wars musical would work, so bear with me for a sec:

(Also please keep in mind that I studied theatre in college but NOT music, haha.)

The musical would be pretty dang long but would still be two acts, Act I covering the prequels and Act II the original trilogy.

I think it makes a lot of sense to give the musical an omniscient narrator (like The Narrator in Into the Woods or Hermes in Hadestown). The choice that seems to make the most sense is C-3PO (accompanied by R2-D2), but my vote is actually for Obi-Wan—though the story follows Anakin, he is the throughline for the tragedy and the one who probably experienced it the most personally and I NEED people to understand that, okay.

The musical opens with an introduction by Narrator Obi-Wan, and then launches into a 7-10 minute ensemble piece which covers the entirety of the events of Episode I, narrated by all the characters involved. I don’t want this to sound like the opening of Hamilton, but I don’t mind a reference or two (“how does a podracer, orphan, son of a slave and the Force (huh?) dropped into a forgotten spot in the Outer Rim by happenstance, impoverished, in squalor, become both a dictator and a martyr?” you get the idea). Qui-Gon makes a brief appearance in this scene and duets with Obi-Wan (in this instance I’m not sure if this should be a different actor? Probably, as it would make the transition into Episode II smoother, I just worry that it might be confusing) in which they bicker over Obi-Wan’s rule-following nature and Qui-Gon’s go-with-the-flow ideology. He then sings a section about the will of the force (maybe this whole song is called Will of the Force?) which is interspersed with interjectory melodies from the arrival of Jar-Jar, Queen Amidala and her handmaidens (the handmaidens are a mini-choir), and Padme (with the introduction of her theme), and this section ends with them running into Anakin. The rest of the song involves the introduction of Palpatine and his theme, and the only appearance of Darth Maul, and then the lightsaber fight ensues (fully choreographed) and Maul dies, then Qui-Gon dies in Obi-Wan’s arms (Narrator Obi-Wan looking on sadly), singing one last chorus of Will of the Force, something something “train the boy…it is the will of the Force” (Narrator Obi-Wan echoes “will of the Force…”), then the full ensemble sings one last big chorus, with Adult Anakin joining and then trading places with Child Anakin (a la Shrek’s Fiona). End of song.

Transition to Episode II. This is mainly going to focus on Anakin’s personal tragedy for the sake of time, so the galactic politics might have to get sidelined a little bit—BUT, this is important, after the opening number, whenever Palpatine is not on-stage, he is always sitting in a side balcony closest to the stage watching the events on-stage in full view of the audience. He’s the one pulling the strings, I want him to be LOOMING over the proceedings, got it?

It starts with Anakin’s “I Want” song, as he sings about how he wants recognition from the Jedi, recognition from the Council, from Obi-Wan, etc. We get the sense from this song about how he seems like a bit of an outlier among the Jedi due to his unusual circumstances.

The story proceeds. Narrator Obi-Wan now acts as himself in the story, switching between his role in the story and his narrator role.

Anakin and Obi-Wan probably have a bickering duet (a reprise of the Qui-Gon Obi-Wan duet? Probably. I’ll call it the Padawan Song). They meet Padme again, during which she reprises her theme. Her and Anakin’s romance plays out, they sing a gorgeous love duet, it’s wonderful, it’s beautiful, it takes part of the melody from Across the Stars, you get it.

These other things happen, though in what order I can’t decide:

• The Senate has a Senate Battle song, and the Jedi Council has a Jedi Council Battle song. Both songs very explicitly mirror each other.

• Palpatine has a theme that he debuts early on which he reprises in minor when he finally shows his cards to Anakin as a Sith Lord.

• Obi-Wan has a ballad about how he doesn’t know how to train Anakin, addressing both Qui-Gon and the Force.

• Qui-Gon makes a brief Force Ghost appearance when Anakin kills the Sandpeople (although I’m not sure how naturally this plot point can be incorporated? So I think this one’s a maybe. Qui-Gon appears when he does something evil, anyway.)

• Ahsoka is there because I said so (and her leaving the Jedi is instrumental to Anakin’s fall). They have their reprise of the Padawan Song in which it becomes very apparent that Anakin is trying to imitate Obi-Wan as a master at first, but fails miserably.

• C-3PO and R2-D2 have a song about their frustrations with having to hide Anakin and Padme’s marriage. 3PO sings traditionally, R2 sings entirely in beeps.

• The Clones get a fun song. Because I said so. Rex gets a solo. But this also means that they get a horrible reprise of their song when Order 66 happens. Because I’m evil. They also march through the aisles.

• The Ahsoka leaving the Jedi arc happens (though shortened/possibly altered for the sake of time), ending with a heartbreaking duet between her and Anakin where he begs her to stay. It ends with a solo power ballad in which she escapes the narrative at a cost.

We get to Episode III, all the main events happen as usual, evil Palpatine ballad and Order 66 as described above. Anakin’s turn is marked by a reprise of his “I Want” song overlapping with Palpatine’s song (the “I Want” turning into how he wants to save his wife), and as he succumbs he succumbs to Palpatine’s melody. Also, I want to somehow heavily imply that Palpatine is responsible for Padme’s death.

The fight between him and Obi-Wan is both a song battle and a physical one, the duet sounding like something from Jekyll and Hyde and interspersed with lightsaber choreography. It’s gut-wrenching. It’s goosebump raising, it’s beautiful. I would love the battle to rage through the audience, but that would probably depend on the size of the aisles and whether or not there’s danger of the audience getting bapped with a lightsaber.

The duel ends, probably ending on “you were my brother, Anakin…/I loved you” with Anakin burning on the ground. Obi-Wan then steps out of the scene, and turns to the audience as the Narrator, singing to us about the aftermath—the destruction of the Order, the reiterating the death of Padme (no worries we’re not leaving that offstage), his flight to Tatooine—but then he starts to sing about the twins, and we hear the glimmers of a hopeful theme that isn’t a reprise of anything we’ve heard before. But then the music darkens again. Obi-Wan looks up, and we see Darth Vader standing in the balcony behind Palpatine (now in his Emperor’s garb). The two stare at each other. Curtain.

ACT II. We open on Narrator Obi-Wan again, who is the same actor, now in a gray wig. Luke enters, and sings his “I Want” song.

Now, about Luke. I don’t have any particular ideas about vocal parts for anyone. But I HAVE to insist that Luke be a high tenor (maybe sounds a bit like Orpheus in Hadestown)—I want him to sound VERY vocally different from everyone else in this musical. His “I Want” song, while it should certainly have callbacks to Anakin’s, I want to be entirely his own, as a lot of his other songs are going to be reprises. He wants to fly, he wants freedom, he wants adventure in the great wide somewhere, etc. Luke is a typical teenager, but he’s also a delight and brightens any scene he’s in. You can SEE the Force radiating off of this guy. I am determined to make him your favorite character in this musical.

He meets Ben, they meet Han and Chewie (does Chewie sing? I don’t know?), etc etc. (Do Luke and Ben get a Padawan song? Maybe? I don’t know, I don’t want to overdo this one.) The Cantina Band gets a bit of a song, and Han gets an introductory song.

I’m unsure of how to do the Falcon as a setpiece, but like, it’s a thing. Somehow.

Leia gets a song, although I don’t have a lot of ideas on that front.

As they try to escape the Death Star, Luke, Han, and Leia have a bicker song (a la Into the Woods) as they run around, shoot Stormtroopers, swing over chasms (if it’s physically viable), etc. I would love to somehow work out the trash compactor but I don’t know if it’s possible.

We then get the Ben-Vader fight. (Vader is still played by Anakin, though I think his voice might be another actor, at least until he takes off the helmet.) It begins like the Padawan Song on Vader’s part, but Obi-Wan transitions it into their duel theme and they fight. The fight is more subdued and calculated this time (doesn’t rage into the aisles if it did originally), and of course ends as it usually does, with Obi-Wan letting Vader kill him, Luke screaming from a part of the set where he can’t get to them.

After they escape, Luke looks sadly for a long, silent moment where Narrator Obi-Wan used to stand. He then takes his place and his role as Narrator.

Narrator Luke launches into the story of how they destroyed the Death Star. I genuinely have no idea how to stage the X-Wings, but the number is an ensemble song between Luke, the pilots, Leia, Vader, and Han and Chewie flying in at the last minute. It’s great, it’s glorious, lots of light effects, maybe projections, it’s beautiful. Obi-Wan’s voice (offstage) sings to Luke to turn off the targeting computer (maybe to the melody of Padawan Song).

Luke narrates the events of the next few years.

Again, these things all happen in what order I can’t decide:

• Han and Leia reprise the Luke-Han-Leia bicker song, except without Luke there, it suddenly transitions into a love duet and they break off, confused. Later on the Falcon, they sing it for real and it ends with the kiss. When Han gets frozen in carbonite, they sing their song and the melody starts to drift into Anakin and Padme’s theme. Though it’s subtle, Vader is affected by this.

• C-3PO and R2-D2 have a reprise of their song, this time they are complaining about being saddled with the Death Star plans and being put in constant danger.

• No Wampa (sorry), Luke probably just wrecks, but he sees Ghost Obi-Wan. This is either done through bluish lighting, costuming, or a combination of both. When he encounters him again on Dagobah, Ghost Obi-Wan takes over as Narrator again, it’s quite triumphant.

• On Dagobah, Yoda is played by an actor with a puppet (like Milky White) as he is in all the previous Jedi Council scenes. He has his own kooky comedic song, and then he and Luke have a Padawan Song as he trains him, with Obi-Wan involved here and there.

• Obi-Wan sings a reprise of Will of the Force in which he tells Luke he has to kill Vader, which he of course he isn’t a fan of. The dark side cave scene? I want it but I’m not sure how it would work.

• An easily-dropped Stormtrooper song (doesn’t specifically echo the Clone song, but they march through the aisles in a similar fashion).

• A reprise of Palpatine’s song, in which he duets with Vader, and Vader unsuccessfully tries to hide the fact that he’s discovered that Luke is his son. Important note: up until this point, Palpatine has NOT been in the balcony, but he appears there immediately after this song.

• Lando gets a jazzy introductory theme!

• Luke and Vader have their own battle duet that MIGHT briefly harken to the Padawan Song when he tries to convince Luke to join him.

• …though I desperately don’t want to, I think I’m legally obligated to give Jabba a song. *siiggghh

• Luke and Leia have a duet when he tells her she’s his sister.

• The Ewoks should be there. I don’t quite know how to do it, but they should be.

When Luke confronts the Emperor (presumably on a raised platform with some significant height), Palpatine begins with his villain song, with Luke wavering with his “I Want” song, similar to how Anakin does in Act I. However, instead of succumbing to Palpatine’s, he refuses Palpatine and suddenly breaks into Padme’s theme. Vader is briefly shaken, but he attacks, and in the ensuing song battle (that again might rage through the aisles), as Luke (though he briefly dips out of it when Vader mentions Leia) harkens back to Padme, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan’s themes, finally defeating Vader.

Palpatine then electrocutes Luke, there’s cool lighting effects. Narrator Obi-Wan looks expectantly at Vader. There’s a pause as Vader looks at his son. He sings a line of his and Padme’s love duet. Pauses. Sings another line, Vader’s voice is joined by Anakin’s. Sings another, louder, and then, with a cry of rage, throws Palpatine down the shaft (behind the setpiece and onto a mattress).

He then collapses, Luke rushes to him, Vader tells him to take off his helmet (in Vader’s voice), and Luke does, revealing Anakin, aged and scarred. In a broken voice, he sings a joyful reprise of his “I Want” song, all about his wishes for his children. He looks over at Narrator Obi-Wan. Back at Luke. Smiles, and then passes into the waiting arms of the Force.

There is a musical interlude as all of the set pieces are cleared offstage. Narrator Obi-Wan summarizes how the Rebels succeeded and the Empire fell. He looks offstage expectantly as the Ewok party assembles, and Force Ghost Anakin joins him. Obi-Wan gestures for him to take over, and after a moment’s hesitation and an encouraging nod from Obi-Wan, Anakin does, telling the fates of all our main characters as the party kicks into gear. He finishes with Luke, and at the sound of his name, Luke’s head snaps toward him and watches his father talk about him with a beaming smile on his face. They share a look, and then the whole ensemble breaks into the finale, a final reprise of Will of the Force, at first beginning with the characters at the Ewok party, but eventually incorporating all the main characters (including a Skywalker Family Moment). Narrator Obi-Wan is the last to join, looking back at the audience with a smile of true joy on his face before he does. Because, in the end, it wasn’t a sad song, and he’s gonna sing it again.

Curtain.

#I got…way more caught up in this than I expected #Star Wars #musical #anakin skywalker #obi wan kenobi #luke skywalker #padme amidala #anidala #ahsoka tano #leia organa #starwarsblr

36 notes · View notes

hopelesslyromanticshark · 4 hours

Note

Hey covey,

Could you do a one-shot or blurb based of the song Before he cheats by Carrie Underwood with a female reader? Love your writing so much, it's so amazing.

💖-Aurora

⋆ ˚｡⋆౨ৎ Maybe Next Time, He'll Think Before He Cheats

𝜗𝜚 content...cheater! leo valdez x reader fic 𝜗𝜚 warnings...mentions of cheating and the repercussions that follow those actions lmao also language as per usual 𝜗𝜚 letter's from the author...hate to do my pookie dirty like this lmao but it was also so so therapeutic to write such a ragey piece of work lmao- I DO NOT CLAIM CHEATER LEO IF A MAN EVER CHEATS ON ME YOU WILL NOT SEE HIS ASS AGAIN LMAO-

────────── ౨ৎ ──────────

all the ladies love leo, right? or, maybe, leo just loves to play all the ladies.

you realize, a bit too late, that leo valdez loved the chase more than he ever loved you. hindsight's a funny thing, huh?

you should have known better from the moment he started getting a little too cozy with calypso but he just treated you so well. you couldn't help but be blinded by the rose colored glasses he slid over your eyes.

though, seeing him at the dionysus party, his arm draped over her and her hips bumping with his own shattered the whole thing for you. that's not how friends interact and they especially don't make-out in the bathroom, thinking they're sneaky when they are so so obvious.

naturally, you were crushed, but you could cry later. right now? right now you were gonna break his heart in the only way you knew how.

if there was one thing leo valdez loved more than chicks, it was cars. he harassed chiron into letting him bring a car from some junkyard for him to work on as some project. months ago, he'd brought you to see the rust bucket, wrapping his arms around your waist and pressing a kiss to your cheek, muttering about fixing it up just to take you on a date in it. you wondered if he told similar things to calypso, nearly certain he did.

rat bastard.

gods, you wanted to see him in ruins. and you just happened to know just the way to his playboy heart. Without so much as a word, you left the party, in fairness a bit tipsy but your anger kept you upright. you left leo to his bathroom escapades, a little smirk at the thought that he was gonna be obvious and unaware until the morning.

you marched your way through those woods, knowing the path like the back of your hand, which just made you sick to your stomach. you'd given so much to this boy. memorizing the way out to his safe space, just for him to throw it all away from some girl!

you weren't a football expert, but i believe this is what we call a fumble, folks.

the son of hephaestus had given you a way into bunker nine, a special little bracelet that granted you enterance. you were certain he had explained how it worked at some point, but it was far to intricate for you. all that mattered was that it worked, which it did, you doing a little cheer as you swung the door open. festus looked up at the intrusion but settled back down when he saw it was you.

"our little secret, okay, bud?" you whispered to the metal dragon, rubbing your hands over the metal ridges that you knew he liked to be petted at. the dragon gave a warm hum, the metal heating until your fingers before it settled back down once more.

you kneeled down, picking up one of the many hammers that littered the floor of bunker nine, testing it's weight in your hands before glancing up at the car. to leo's testament, it was nearly done and damn beauty. the rust had long since been replaced with a shiny new paint, the tires no longer bare and popped, and the engine purred like a big kitten.

and you were gonna leave it so broken even hephaestus himself couldn't fix it - let alone his player of a son.

originally, you were organized, shattering windows with intention and scratching the paintjob with any sharp tools you could wrap your fingers around. but the longer you went on, the more the rage festered and the more chaotic it became.

true to your word, by the time you were done, huffing and even scratched up yourself, the car looked like it got into a fight with an atomic bomb. (which, to be fair, wasn't too far off)

that shiny paintjob? it's shine was hidden behind 'cheater' and 'pendejo' being scratched on top of it. the tires, so full of air, looked like they got into a fight with a shark without how many slashes they had. and you weren't an idiot, you knew the basics of an engine. which means you knew the basics of how to tear it apart, scattering the bolts and headers around like glitter. oh! speaking of glitter, you shoved that shit so far into the air vents and gas tank, it'll take many many many generations for it to finally be gone.

you left that evening, your bracelet set before what was once been a car.

you were satisfied, knowing leo'd have his fun tonight, but his whole world would be shattered by the morning. shattered like your heart! or, and I prefer this one, shattered like the windshield!

as the sun rose the next morning, word quickly spread of leo's car and it's disastrous end. you pretended to be shocked as one of your siblings told you, raving and lying about how disheartened you were for the boy, even if you guys were broken up.

but, over breakfast, you cut your eyes to table nine, catching the glare of a certain boy. you held his eyes for a few moments, before breezing over to the table, leaning towards him as you walked past.

"hope she was worth it. maybe when you fix it up, again, you can take her on a date in it. because it sure as hades won't be me in that damn car, leo valdez."

you pulled away with a sickly sweet smile and a wink before skipping past the ares cabin, making sure to wave at a few of the boys and blow them some kisses. which left leo clenching his fist and turning away from the sight, something he knew to be jealous but refusing to admit to it brewing in his gut.

hey, not only boys can play the game! plus, girls do it better anyways.

42 notes · View notes

thejakeformerlyknownasprince · 6 hours

Note

I would say, your response to an ask saying Seerow "taught the Yeerks Andalite Imperialism" feels a BIT like putting too much blame on Seerow. From what we know, all he gave the Yeerks was the tech to go to other plants. Them deciding to conquer other species never seemed like something they got from him....though, now I DO wonder what got the Yeerks on their path to conquest? Like, I feel like there's a legit interesting story about how they went from Simply being able to go to other planets to mind controlling other races. Especially since they may not have even known they COULD brainwash other races. After all, the Geds were a species they had a symbiotic relationship with. How in the world did they figure out they could control other species too?

There was an excellent fic (which I must find but can't remember the title or author) that speculated that the yeerks were originally scavengers, until a living gedd fell into a pond and a yeerk discovered the ability to crawl into its ear and control it. From then on yeerks would sometimes ride around in gedds for a few hours or days at at time, then exit back to their pools when they got hungry, but there was no philosophy behind it. Their rationalization for this was as nonexistent as the tapeworm's rationalization for starving a human. It just happened on occasion, mostly by luck.

However, (as Aftran points out) humans went from hunters to factory-farmers, and invented elaborate justifications for that decision. And yeerks at some point went from using gedds as an occasional opportunity to hunt or joy-ride, to having a whole culture built around enslaving other species. My argument is that Seerow may have played a role in building that justification, however accidentally.

Sort of like how it'd be both false and racist to say that Europe taught Japan imperialism, but it is true (and part of the historical record) that Japan moved to conquer Korea and China because its government deduced that imperialism was the way to compete in this new global world. Japan's imperialism wouldn't exist without England's, even though neither country invented the idea of invading other countries to kill the locals and steal their resources. Yeerks' imperialism wouldn't exist without andalites', even though no one told yeerks to enslave their hosts.

#animorphs #yeerks #andalites #imperialism #animorphs meta #seriously if anyone knows the fic i'm talking about please let me know and i'll link to it #my ao3 hunt was unsuccessful

32 notes · View notes

theresattrpgforthat · 2 days

Note

I asked abaut a dating rpg but of you know of an easier game to hak than KoB i woud love recomendasions for that to Im kinda new to haking so I woud lovde tips on games easy to change

THEME: Hackable Games (Dating Sims).

Alright friend, I said I’d address both parts of your question, and this is me answering both parts of your question. In my previous rec post, we talked about ways you could take dating sim games that are already out there and how you could combine them with Kids on Bikes. I also talked about the Kids on Bikes system, and the kinds of things I think it expects from people who are playing it.

So, now that we’re talking about games that are easy to hack, let’s talk about some options. I've got two different approaches here: taking romance games and tweaking them, and using some beginner-friendly SRDs.

Caltrop Core, by TitanomachyRPG.

Ever wondered how to make your own TTRPG? Welcome to v1.2 of Caltrop Core, an introductory game design system using the humble and sharp d4!

Caltrop Core is a system designed for folks that are new to game design. It’s meant to be an extremely simple system reference document (or SRD) that guides you through the basics of the game you want to play. Your resolution will involve rolling a number of d4s and looking for the highest one; as the designer you’ll have to decide what is worth rolling for and whether your characters will be spending resources (tokens) to improve their chances of rolling or whether they’ll use a predetermined set of stats. The range of games that have been made with this system are very broad, from games about underwater cephalopods, to games about taxis in space, to games about doing your best to win your sapphic love.

What’s So Cool About _? By Jared Sinclair.

The original game of What’s So Cool About Outer Space? is no longer available on Itch.io, but Litza Bronwyn’s guide on how to make a WSCA game is still there. WSCA is a very simple system, asking each player to make up a few things about their character, and then detailing how to resolve something that is risky. What success and failure look like will usually be determined by the table as a group, and the player will roll 2d6, adding +1 to the total based off of things that exist on your character sheet or other questions that make sense in the genre that you’re playing.

The GM advice is also pretty basic, encouraging the Game Master to continually introduce new things that are happening, and dealing some key elements of the genre that you’re trying to emulate. There’s also the expectation that as you play, the game will grow; you’ll come up with new rules to make sense of specific situations or challenges that make sense for the kind of game you are playing. This is another beginner-friendly approach to game design, starting you off with a few basic tools and encouraging you to fiddle with them until you have a game that makes sense for your table.

If you want to see what kinds of games people have made in this genre, I recommend checking out the What Is So Cool About Jam!

Dating Sim, by Tyler Crumrine.

Dating.sim is a light-hearted romance roleplaying game inspired by the TV show The Dating Game as well as the “dating simulator” video game genre. Dating simulators are narrative-heavy games where players can date one of multiple eligible characters via choose-your-own-adventure-style conversations. Make the right choices and a character might like you more, make the wrong choices and they might like you less. Dating.sim recreates this structure through competitive roleplaying, with players improvising multiple-choice options for one player to select over the course of a date.

With more of a competitive, game-show style of play, if you pick up Dating Sim, you’re not so much hacking a game as you are creating a setting to put into the game. The art for the game points to a multitude of genres, so you would just want to start the game by asking the table about the universe this dating game show is happening in, and what kinds of contestants would be on it. This suggestion is more in line with the previous week’s posts, but sometimes trying out these kinds of games will help you figure out what kinds rules make sense for the game your playing; are your dates competitions? Are they mysteries? Or are they something else?

Thirsty Sword Lesbians, by Evil Hat.

Thirsty Sword Lesbians is considered genre-agnostic, with some suggested settings inside the game, but plenty of room to create or borrow a setting of your own. Hacking this game could be anything from creating your own custom setting but running it rules as written all the way to creating your own movies and character playbooks to fit the feeling of a dating simulator.

In general, PbtA games can provide great engines for interpersonal drama, which means that it often lends itself to allowing players to take things down a romantic path. Pasión de las Pasiones is another romantic PbtA game, this time originally focused around Spanish telenovelas, but I’ve seen people hack it for other genres as well.

However, keep in mind that the more concentrated a game is around a specific type of media or theme, the more work you’ll likely have to do in order to make it work for the theme you’re aiming for. In terms of PbtA games, this is especially true.

Boyfriend Dungeon Unofficial TTRPG, by CaptainKrail.

Make a character, fight through Dunj's, Craft items, Wield friends, level up by increasing your relasionships and fall in love in this Tabletop adaptation.

This TTRPG is an adaptation of the Powered By the Apocalypse system, using 2D6 to resolve conflict.

Because this game is specifically inspired by a dating-sim style game that involves impressing potential partners through learning about them, this game might be worth looking at, although many of the character options are focused around combat. I like the fact that part of the progression in this game is discovering more about the back-stories of the date-able companions, indicating that you are growing when you’ve built enough trust with someone to unveil more about their personal story.

Some Other Things To Think About

So I’ve watched a pretty in-depth explanation of how games like Tokimeki Memorial work, and I’ve also played Monster Prom. Both of these games reward multiple plays, because you’re expected to learn more and more about each romance-able character with every time that you play. If you wanted to replicate that in a tabletop roleplaying game, I think the closest mechanics that work for that kind of game are mystery games, especially games that have characters slowly accumulate clues that they can use to answer a bigger question.

The two biggest games that I can think of that are mystery-related are Brindlewood Bay and the GUMSHOE system.

Brindlewood Bay is a game about elderly ladies solving eldritch mysteries, but it’s also been hacked a number of times to represent mystery-solving in various settings. If each “mystery” was focused around a single date-able character, and the theorize roll was transformed into a roll that is actually you asking them out, you might have an interesting loop there.

GUMSHOE is an investigative roleplaying system that is designed to feed the players different clues throughout the course of play, but leaves the interpretation up to the players, giving them a series of investigative abilities that help them uncover extra information. You could re-structure this to make the clues elements of a character’s backstory, with the abilities of each character tied to ways that they can set their crushes at ease, slowly unlocking information that informs them about what kind of date their crush would like to go on.

A big caveat I have with both of these games is that I don’t think they’re necessarily easier to hack, especially if you haven’t played either of them. If you want to turn games like these into a fleshed-out dating simulator, my recommendation would be to pick up the game, run it RAW for a little bit, and think about what you like or don’t like about the game. If you want to make a quick hack, this kind of process probably isn’t for you.

#tabletop games #game recommendations #indie ttrpgs #dnd #asks #indie ttrpg #dating sim

25 notes · View notes

yuri-is-online · 6 hours

Note

Okay so Trey in the Blotpocalypse timeline or where Yutu comes from also Overblotted right??

And I like to imagine he became an extreme sadist or really really evil once he overbloted, and his Yutu does NOT buy the stories of Trey being actually a very chill and “I don’t want problems, don’t involve me with whatever shenanigans you have” guy.

And when goes to the timeline of now he just.

“Wait, this guy fr??? I saw this guy overbloted and being a sadist maniac, the FUCK you mean he is just the son of the baker”

¬‿¬ you read my mind camrastuff. Overblot Trey is a sadistic bastard, and his children are three of his favorite people to pick on... because yeah the original idea for Trey! Yutu passed peer review, and Furubatsu was kind enough to give us the names Yutres and Yushi for the other two triplets. You will regret giving me this power because I am going to use it to hurt you ψ(｀∇´)ψ

notes: they/them used for Yuu, for context on the fyuuture kid au can be found here and here. This post is heavier on the angst than the other Yutu posts and contains references to gore, depression, and major character death. Please engage responsibly.

They grew up associating home with violets.

Yuu would always keep a few plants on their bedroom windowsill, but the violets spilled all over the house. "They remind me of your father." They would always say, with a gentle look in their eyes that turns sad when they reach for the memories that just aren't there. As the triplets grow, they take turns caring for them so Yuu can rest and wonder about what that man was like and how Yuu came to associate him with the flowers. Yutres is the one who brings up their association with newlyweds and wonders if they were planning a wedding.

"There would be a record of it if they got married." Yushi says it like she's searched for the license already, and knowing his sister like he does Yutu is pretty sure she has. Yutres pulls her blanket around herself in embarrassment and Yutu finds himself speaking up before she can feel any worse.

"She was just saying it's romantic." Yutu doesn't like fighting with his sisters. He likes it even less when they fight with each other, everyone who isn't the two of them says it's because he's the oldest. That he has an instinctive need to protect them as their big brother, . "A lot of the things they say about dad are very romantic." Yushi rolls her eyes, but doesn't disagree. Domestic is the word Yutu would prefer to use for how Yuu talks about his father. They think about him most when they're cooking or taking care of him and his siblings. It's not enough to give him a clear picture of the man, but it's enough to feel like he might have loved him. He's willing to go with what Yushi theorized after looking far harder than he or Yutres, that Yuu ran away from home and settled down with their dad, only for him to die and ruin the good future they were trying to build with each other. It does nothing to dissuade Yutres from seeing it as romantic, or Yushi from blaming him for all their problems. Yutu refuses to take sides, forever the peacemaker destined to drown his own opinion under the weight of not wanting to make anyone mad. Deep down though, he doesn't care about what his dad was like. He just wishes someone was there to help, to make things less financially strained so he could play a sport at school and maybe make some friends.

When he meets his father he takes it all back. He wishes he never met the man at all.

Yutu per tradition is the oldest sibling, Yutres is the second born and Yushi the third. I like to think they have darker colored hair since Trey's green hair is rather dark, their eyes are "normal" for Yuu's world but turn yellow when they arrive in Twisted Wonderland. Yutres inherits Trey's height and poor eyesight, and she's deeply insecure about both due to the large amount of bullying she received growing up. Yutu is also tall, just not as tall as his sister while Yushi is at least a half foot shorter than her siblings and enjoys complaining about it. She accuses her siblings of stealing her height in the womb, but says it's ok because she got all the brains.

The kids grew up extremely poor. Three kids on a single parent's salary is no joke, Yuu was deeply stressed for a lot of their younger years. None of the fyuuture kids like Yuu's home town but the triplets especially hated it there. They felt like animals in a zoo or cast members of a freak show with how acceptable it was to point and stare at them. When they moved away once Yuu managed to secure a place with a better middle school for them to attend they were ecstatic. It was a nice change of pace to just be bullied for being poor.

They spent a lot of time as children playing made up games with each other, a lot of them revolved around cooking since Yuu seemed to really like doing that. They used to run pretend restaurants, or ice cream parlors, or cafes, anything that served food really. They always colored the menus together and asked Yuu to give them good reviews (5 stars for the babies obviously, yuu has a bunch of them in a folder somewhere they look at when things get rough)

I really like the idea of Trey being with a Yuu who has a vague interest in candy making? Because it's a similar interest to baking but still very different and I really like the idea of one of the triplets being interested in it. As the three get older, Yutu and Yutres learn as much about cooking and baking as they can, from Yuu, from the internet and the local library while Yushi applies herself more to experimenting with making things like taffy and caramel. She convinces her siblings to sell their product on the down low at school to bring in some money they can hopefully use to start a business someday. She's the most business minded of the three of them, Yutu privately thinks she has the biggest personality in an effort to make up for being the shortest.

The three of them are obviously major sweet tooths, but they disagree about what desert is best. Yutu loves custards and ice creams, Yutres thinks cake is best especially if it's fluffy, and Yushi likes things made with jams and candied fruits. It made trying to do something for their birthday a nightmare until Yuu realized they all loved hot chocolate and was able to convince them to have a "tea party" for their birthday where they got copious amounts of hot chocolate and some homemade cookies. It's a memory they all treasure and recreate when they arrive in Twisted Wonderland.

That arrival is much easier on the three of them than it is on a lot of the other Yutus. It helps having two other siblings you're deeply connected to when learning you're from another world, your parent is dying from a curse, and that magic is real but only two of you have it. NRC has ceased to be a boys only or even a mage's only school at this point, but it's still hurts for Yutres to learn that her siblings have something special about them while she's still just her. Crewel takes her aside to speak with her as the ceremony goes on without him, asking her if she thinks poorly of Yuu for just being themselves and Yutres can't fathom why she would do that. "Because that's what you're doing to yourself. Your siblings won't love you any less and you won't be of any less help. You are your parent's child after all." Something that Crewel sees as being made all the more true when two first year Heartslabyul students burst through the door and start whining for their sister to do their make up.

Yutres draws a Spade on Yutu to represent a knight's spear, because she thinks of her brother as someone who wants to protect people, and she's deeply grateful for all of the times he's stuck up for her. Yushi gets a diamond because Yutres thinks her sister is very classy and well put together, "diamonds are a girl's best friend or something" is how she words it, but that trademark Clover smirk is there to suggest there's more to it than that. She settles in to Ramshackle almost immediately after meeting the ghosts, who are overjoyed to have another Yuu in their happy haunt.

Heartslabyul suits her siblings well enough. Yutu thinks all these rules are exhausting but he tries his best to do his best so as not to rock the boat. Yushi is more or less the same, but she sort of wants to become Dorm Leader so she can throw a bunch of Unbirthday Parties because those sound fun. The lack of fresh food available to cook with is a drag sure, but she's sure she can at least find some good teas to serve... she just feels like the people around her could use some hope and she drags Yutu into figuring out how to find it.

That journey is long, at the end of it are six known phantoms wreaking havoc on their father's world and one that so few people know about they aren't sure he exists. At some point, all three triplets join a mission to the Queendom and debriefed by S.T.Y.X. about the phantom that roams there.

"Your quest is not to kill the Queen or her mini boss level minions." Idia is a strange person, Yutu can tell he's on the same page as his sisters without bothering to look. "You're just there as support for the front line mages and to get a realistic idea of what they're fighting against." He lets his hands fall to his sides and drops eye contact, chewing on his lower lip as he hesitates. Finally he takes a deep breath and turns towards the display, flicking through footage of the various monsters he had been talking about earlier. "A phantom is a husk using what's left of an overblotted mage to find and feed off of new magic sources. They can get very creative in how they do that." He focuses on a video of the Phantom Hatter, enlarging it so the triplets can get an uncomfortable look at it's facial features and know why Idia was struggling to talk to them. The monster is tall, with glasses and a top hat that would be sort of comical if he wasn't overseeing a table filled with rotting cakes and pastires for a party attended by corpses in varying states of decay. "This one talks. Don't listen to a word it says."

Trey has lines during lessons and in various other places suggesting he could never obey the Queen, and since Riddle is more Queen now than himself Trey has a degree of independence when compared to the other card soldiers. The S.T.Y.X. staff classify him as a rogue phantom and highly dangerous. He can talk, he uses his unique magic to make people confused about their surroundings, to mimic the voices of their loved ones and lure them towards packs of monsters where he'll watch silently as they die. He's picky about who he "invites" to his mad tea party, it's difficult to get a drone close enough to his base to analyze who the victims are.

Idia was vehemently against sending the Clover triplets anywhere near an area that the Hatter could be. That's beyond cruel to them and extremely dangerous, he just knows that Trey will find them and that it won't go well. Phantoms corrupt the natural instinct of the person they're feeding off of, and while Idia thinks Trey was always a sketchy bastard he knows that he was a domestic one too. If there's enough of him left to recognize his children... his worries are soothed by Ortho promising to keep an eye on them and the fact the mission isn't in Trey's usual territory.

It doesn't help. A familiar sees the strange looking children and speeds off to fetch its master. The Phantom Hatter doesn't show himself immediately, he watches, waits for everyone to relax just a little bit before he strikes, chasing everyone into one of the Queendom's many hedge mazes and isolating them from one another. The stress causes Yushi to discover her unique magic as she desperately tries to feel for her siblings, she is able to form a brief telepathic connection with someone she knows and see things as they are. She can tell that Yutu and Yutres are in danger, and decides to run for her brother first. She's sure he'll be half way to their sister by the time she finds him, he's the oldest. He always knows what to do. And while she's right she's also wrong, by the time she finds Yutu he's already found Yutres, but someone else has too. The Hatter doesn't blink. He doesn't breathe either she notices, but her sister still shrinks back, pulling an injured Yutu closer to her.

"Well that's just rude." It's not a voice they've heard before, but he's somehow so familiar. Like they heard this voice before, sometime long ago, whispered into the warmth that existed before they were torn from this world to be born in another one. "I'm just trying to say hello." Yushi doesn't think he's noticed her yet, she focuses on holding her breath and looking for a way out. Yutres maintains eye contact with the monster as she applies a potion to Yutu's wound and prays, to who or what she doesn't know, that he heals. "Have we met before? You seem awfully familiar." The monster summons bones up from the ground, closing in around the triplets and knocking Yushi out of hiding as the phantom looks over his shoulder to tip his hat and wink. It's an opening Yutres immediately takes, throwing Yutu behind her and jumping to hit at the monster's rib cage, landing a blow that causes a sickening crunch.

"RUN!" Yushi screams, she thinks she grabs her sister and brother's hands and drags them on instinct and adrenaline back to the base camp until a senior smites down the phantom the Hatter had mimic her sister and takes an unconscious Yutu to the medical tent.

Ortho tries to track down Yutres, but he's unsuccessful. It's months later when Idia finally thinks to send drones to check what's left of the Clover family bakery and finally finds her body. She's been laid in a children's bed, covered with a blanket. He can't tell if what's left of Trey couldn't bear to look at his dead daughter or if the phantom thought he was just putting her to sleep. It's too much even for Idia, he personally retrieves her and helps the surviving kids plan the funeral. It's not the first time he's felt responsible for getting someone's child killed, but it's the most personal.

Yutu's numb. Yushi is looking to him for guidance, and he doesn't know what to say to comfort her or to make it better. They're missing a part of themselves and are much too quick to agree to Idia's plan to send them back in time, their parents are the last thing on their minds they just want their sister back. When Yushi arrives in the Queendom she's able to tell where everyone is and go searching for them. When Yutu arrives at NRC he's terrified he's lost his only remaining sister, and that's before he has to deal with his dad.

Trey is a freak, but he's a domesticated freak. A domesticated freak who is deeply in denial about being in love with you or anything other than normal. He appreciates that Riddle feels comfortable enough to invite you to Heartsabyul, whether it's for a casual tea or for an Unbirthday party since it saves him the trouble of having to do it himself and you're always so eager to help... but then Yutu arrives and suddenly your attentions are a bit split. You still come around for the parties, but casual teas are becoming less and less. He tries to tease you about it, asking where else you're going to get your cakes from and that's when you mention it. "Oh Yutu bakes a lot and he's really good at it. I always feel bad for bothering you so, it's nice to not have to do it so much anymore." Oh? Well isn't that just cute, Trey isn't bothered by this at all. He might not think there's a difference between something bought from a store or something "made with love" but he certainly thinks there's a difference between him and another guy. And he wants you to choose him.

Yutu is terrified of his father. He still has nightmares of what happened to Yutres, and he's afraid he's lost Yushi now too. No one had much to say about Trey in the future, most all of his friends were either dead or phantoms and while Grandpa Crewel was enthusiastic in describing his interest in science he didn't give them much backstory. Idia never spoke poorly of him, and tried to impress on him that what killed his sister was a monster using his dad's magic and not actually his dad but when that thing kills your sister...

He doesn't know what to make of him. Trey's extremely chill so long as no one is causing trouble, he convinces himself to keep an eye on the Phantom Hatter, but he doesn't see any signs of that. The guy is really weird about teeth, and definitely in denial about his feelings for his parent but he is, weirdly enough, closer to that word Yutu would have associated with him before he came to Twisted Wonderland than he is anything that would describe that monster. He's domestic, a guy who looks like he'd be more at home in socks and sandals than surrounded by corpses. He overworks himself and takes naps on the Guest Room couch, he confesses that he was hoping to join some sort of cooking club but settled for the science one, and the way he looks at Yuu when he thinks no one is looking is so soft Yutu wants to choke. Idia's original warning, that a phantom isn't a person anymore and that the monster will do anything to convince you otherwise. But what would his sisters think if he ever thought about forgiving him?

"Is there a specific reason you wanted to grow violets?" Trey tries to keep his voice down, but Yutu still starts when he hears him. He didn't jump 10 feet in the air this time, so he likes to think he's making progress, though towards what he doesn't know. Yutu looks at the flowers, Trey can't see his eyes, but his grip on the watering can is tense. "Not judging, just curious." He tries to soothe him in the same tone of voice he would one of his younger siblings, and it does seem to work somewhat. "I really like them myself."

"My sister..." Yutu chokes on what sounds like a half sob, and Trey immediately regrets trying to help. "My sister really liked them she... she always thought they were romantic." The past tense catches Trey's attention immediately and something in him aches, he couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose one of his own siblings and he does talk about them a lot... was he being insensitive? Did he hurt Yutu by reminding him of his sister?

"Are they?" He isolates a few particularly well tended blooms and snips them to add to his basket next to Riddle's strawberries. "I'm not really good with those sorts of things." Yutu snorts, and Trey can't help but feel slighted somehow. "To me they just taste good."

"They taste good?" Yutu squeaks. He sounds indignant and Trey just shrugs.

"Yeah, candied flowers are really popular in the Queendom of Roses. I really like candied violets, ha when I was a kid I didn't realize you needed to cook them first and my parents had to stop me from eating them off the ground." There's quiet for a moment, Trey wonders if he's pushed it too far but Yutu's mouth finally lets out a small noise before he breaks into loud peels of laughter that sound like a weight is lifting off of Yutu's shoulders.

The first thing Yutu thinks when he hears about his father eating flowers is how Yushi tried to do the same thing when she was little. The second is how funny Yutres had thought that was, how she had smiled and laughed and Yutu cannot keep himself from laughing as well. How did this man become that creature? Did the loss of his home hit him that hard? Yutu doesn't know, but he's not afraid anymore. Some of his tension lifts, Yuu tells Trey during one of their hang outs that he's started speaking about his sisters more and that they now know he's a triplet (trey: wow those poor parents yuu: i know right? i could never). He starts getting into lighthearted (from his perspective anyway) spats with Trey over who can bake better. Trey says he has no complaints because he doesn't have to make as much for Unbirthday Party's now but ooooooh he'll be so upset if you say you think Yutu is better than him. If that was the case why's the little shit so interested in listening to what he has to say huh? And how did he pick up on Trey's feelings enough to reassure him he's got nothing to worry about?

The truth about Yutu is revealed during another monster attack. It happens during a science club trip to Crane Port, the sky grows eerily dark, and Yutu tenses out of instinct. Everyone else is confused, is it going to rain? And why is Yutu sprinting away from the group like a bloodhound with a scent? Rook is the one to give chase, Trey tagging along begrudgingly determined to keep the two of them from causing more trouble. But a bunch of trouble is exactly what they find, a monster that resembles an undead, overblotted version of Yuu is thrashing about as a group of... mages they don't recognize attack them. Trey and Rook prepare to help when Yuu notices them and their eyes narrow onto Trey and two of the unfamiliar looking mages absolutely lose it.

Yutu's disguise is knocked off, and Yushi was never wearing one to begin with so it's difficult to deny the similarity between the two now that Trey has a look at them. It's the eyes that he notices first, yellow just like his but bereft of glasses. Yuu's story about Yutu being a triplet rings dully in his mind as the fake Yuu fades from view, banished back to wherever it came from and Trey closes his eyes to do some math.

"There's one of you missing." It's not the statement they're expecting clearly, all justifications for their existence die on their tongues as they exchange a painful glance. Yushi was able to use her magic to see some of what Yutu's life was like at NRC, and she warmed up to what she saw of her dad much faster than Yutu did. Yutu doesn't want to be the one to tell Trey he killed their sister, but he also doesn't want to push that burden onto Yushi so he steels himself, and explains his story. Trey listens and he thinks. He's silent, arms folded as Yutu stumbles through his story before he interrupts his grief by pulling both of his children into his arms. He's a big guy, but they're big kids and he can barely get his arms around them both but he still feels empty.

Trey hates doing work he isn't responsible for, but he loves his family and doesn't see them as constant work. Three children? That Yuu was forced to raise by themselves? Unacceptable, the closer he has been getting to Yuu the more plans he's made for the future he wants with them. He knows what he wanted for these kids, and none of it is what they're describing. Trey might not want to be the best of all time, but he still wants to be the best he can be. Changing the future sounds like a big ask, something that Trey Clover should see as none of his business and easy to ignore. But it's not, it's different when it's his own family. If Idia thinks he's scary now just wait until three Clovers show up on his doorstep demanding he get in their party and stop the apocalypse. Four technically if you count yourself, something they really hope you do.

#<3 asks #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #trey clover x reader #trey clover x yuu

25 notes · View notes