#it does not feel like a year ago i remember it releasing like yesterday
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1 year since re4r has been released and its changed my life sm
#resident evil 4#leon s kennedy#leon kennedy#re4#resident evil 4 remake#fanart#art#art by irregular#digital art#re4 remake#re4r leon#resident evil 4 fanart#resident evil fanart#heavy paint#it does not feel like a year ago i remember it releasing like yesterday#also i may be back now that school has finished for the term#will may be posting a timelapse later or might make a patreon and post it on there
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I played Hades II a fair bit yesterday during my breaks and free time for Supergiant Games' technical test of the game. Part of me wants to keep playing today, but I got stuff to do and I do want to keep up the excitement for the early access. I wrote a rough, kind of unedited essay about it before I went to sleep last night though below, mostly for me to have record of my memories in written form. Some spoiler-y screenshots and random thoughts/analyses below if you want to read more. I mean it--there are spoilers and the most random long tangents because I like to analyze. (I do recommend playing first if you have a chance to)
First thing I'll say is that the game is pretty phenomenal and so damn fun. The experience reminds me of when I played Hades for the first time in their initial Early Access of the game years ago. Longtime Supergiant Games fan here (since Transistor release)! I remember running into a bug then and reporting it when I froze in-game, but I have not run into any noticeable bugs at all yet for Hades II. I've done some reports for minor bugs, but extremely minor ones that I actually feel bad for even reporting and adding to their list of messages to go through. Supergiant has their QA down, truly. I have so much respect for them and how they've developed the game. Darren Korb did an amazing job on the music again. It has that iconic Hades sound with the strings (that is not a guitar, I forget what it's called) while also being its own distinct soundtrack.
The 4th wall banter moments between Melinoë and Homer (who is revealed as narrator!) have been one of my favorite things about the story/narration execution. Her being cognizant of Homer does make it so there are rather funny moments, but also brings up the question of how that might shape the narrative later on. I'm so curious!
When I first started the game, I had a funny moment where I died almost instantly in the second room because I was testing out Melinoe's skillset and ran out of MP (?) and then got slapped because I wasn't actually doing damage when trying to use her bigger skills, heh. It did take me some time to get used to it, but Mel's skills and cast abilities are so much fun to use when utilized well. Her cast and its ability to hold your enemies for a time is one of the best upgrades to combat, in my opinion. For all I love the first Hades, I remember having to dash like crazy to escape exploding carts coming after me if I didn't have a good boon to mitigate or avoid that. With the cast for Melinoë, it'll change that to placing strategically some casts that can hold quick enemies or enemies that are very dangerous if they get close to you (wailers in this game are one such enemy). In terms of boons, Demeter's, Hestia's, and Apollo's have been some of my favorites. Aphrodite also has a phenomenal one for casts that will gather your enemies into your cast, making it an ideal combination with some devastating other boons that can easily damage groups of enemies all at once. Hephaestus also has a pretty fun one where I think he can explode in a certain proximity with your special or attack, I forget. I do wonder if they'll have to rebalance some of these boons because there are certain ones I can annihilate enemies with--but then again, maybe that is needed for later sections of the game.
The numerous references to the moon in the game are a nice nod to Melinoë's lore in Greek mythology and poetry too. Though she's more associated with being a goddess of ghosts (I find it a nice touch you can salute shades you meet in the Crossroads because of this) and nightmares (I don't think it's a coincidence Hypnos is the only other survivor of Hades' inner sanctum), Melinoë has at some point been referenced as a moon goddess as well of the underworld. Selene is the moon goddess and Artemis has also become known as a goddess of the moon in mythology in addition to being the goddess of the hunt. So that connection between the three and the friendship they share in the game is pretty cool in that regard (Selene calls you the "Silver Sisters.")
Having Artemis become your friend in Hades II, something akin to a friendly rivalry like Thanatos was to Zagreus, is such a fun story--and then you have Selene added into that mix as well. From the few runs I've done, I've gathered that Artemis and Hermes are the first of the Olympus gods who knew of Melinoë's existence in her youth as Hecate's pupil. She helped Hecate hide the truth of Melinoës survival (at least from the Olympus gods)--and when Melinoë was ready, it was only then that Artemis leaked through Apollo that Hades' daughter was coming to fight Chronos and had survived the fall of Hades. So the boons you get are because the twins, Artemis and Apollo, played a role in connecting you to Olympus for the fight against Chronos. There seems to be more in this background that I'm curious to learn about. Just from their banter, it's clear Artemis has spent much time with Melinoë and Selene in some form. I don't know if they have duo boons in this game (or boon-hex? Selene gives you a hex), but I'm curious to see what these two's duo boon(s) would be if they have them.
The game also does that thing the first game did so well of shifting the world as you progress and have changes in the relationships about you. Nemesis is one of the new characters in Hades II who doesn't seem to like you very much initially, but with your dialogue with Odysseus nearby, you get the sense that it wasn't always this way. When you gift her a nectar, Melinoë subtly starts calling her "Nem," and you can tell the two of them are very slowly mending whatever it is they have (Odysseus chuckles nearby probably seeing the progress). You also meet Doom Incarnate (Moros) and have to unlock having him at the Crossroads by invoking him, which is also pretty fun in terms of letting you slowly do more runs and experience the world more in order to gather enough "resources" to call him. It allows a natural progression of characterization and getting to know the people around Melinoë, in my opinion.
Dora's also one of my favorite character already. There's something so funny about Melinoë encouraging Dora as she tries to scare and haunt her as a proper ghost, but then also rather touching that she just accepts that Dora just likes to hang out in her room and not go out much. I love Arachne too, and how she's just chillin' like, I'm bored and alone and just spinning webs, so here Melinoë, have some clothes I made.
This game makes me love it as much as I loved the first one. In some ways, in terms of how they executed establishing background and connections between Melinoë and her companions (Odysseus' calls her a "little goddess" as a child! Hecate plays hide-and-go-seek with her!), I think they've started out much stronger than they did in the first game. And this one already starts with a sort of high-stakes situation from the get-go. Melinoë's entire family has been taken by Chronos and she grew up apart from them. The game does well of letting you step into the world even if you haven't played the first one--and playing on your affection for Hades, Persephone, and Zagreus if you did. After all, considering how hard you worked as Zagreus to bring back together that family in the first game, the second game logically comes back with a vengeance with Melinoë at the loss of such a family and a need for vengeance against Chronos for ruining it. The world feels familiar, yet the cast of characters are so different.
And the designs of all the new gods! And the new designs for the old gods! They're all extremely well-done. I've been a longtime fan of the artists for the characters and the environments. They've done stellar jobs on it again for this one, and there's more touches to icons and designs of the UI I like too. The dialogue log is one of my favorite things too, as someone who might miss a piece of dialogue here and there when I take off my headphones. The voice acting in this game is also a whole notch up from the previous game. Not to knock anyone from the first Hades, since I think they did a great job, but I do feel like the voices have been more professionally recorded this time around. Or something about it is a little more polished. Kudos to Supergiant for another game that's an A+ in my book thus far. Ahh!
I could keep going, but honestly, I think it's best to have people experience the game in Early Access. I mostly just wanted a record for myself to look back on for being a small part of Hades II's journey and share some of my excitement and the random analyses I had. It'll be fun for me to look back on how I read some things and how I felt when the finished version of the game comes out eventually.
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You don't scare me
She found him in the seventh-floor corridor just outside of the Room of Requirement far past curfew time. The shadow of his sixth-year burden lay on his shoulders, weighing them down and making him look far older than his eighteen years.
“Draco? What are you doing here? Do you know what time it is?”
He didn’t even startle at her discovery, as if expecting she would find him. He simply turned to face her with a tired blink. His hands hung loosely at his sides, the usually immaculate nails bit down almost to the quick.
“I just wanted to see what it looked like with the Fiendfyre gone.” His voice was hoarse and low. She inspected his eyes expecting them to be rimmed with red, but they were dry.
She nodded in understanding and glanced at the blank wall behind him where she knew the Room stood. The battle seemed so long ago now, yet also as if it had just happened yesterday. If Hermione closed her eyes, she could almost smell the choking smoke, feel the overwhelming heat.
“There was nothing left of him there, not that I expected otherwise.”
Vincent Crabbe. Lumbering gait, forever lurking behind Draco. Her last memory of him was the curl to his lip as he cast the curse that almost burned them all, the same one that took his own life. When they were first years, she remembered him returning the scrunchie she had dropped at the train station. He had blushed as their fingers brushed in the trade.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
He tilted his head at her words, brow furrowing as he processed them. “Why are you sorry? He tried to kill you. We tried to kill you. We made the past seven years of your life here hell—”
His voice was cut off by the touch of her hands taking his into her own. She was impossibly warm. The heat flowed up his arms straight into his chest, nearly staggering him with the force of it.
“Do you remember what I said?” She squeezed his fingers as she waited for his response.
“…you said you forgave me.”
She could barely hear his murmur, and stepped closer into his frame.
“And?”
Draco’s sigh brushed warmth across the top of her hair as she leaned into his chest.
“And that we can’t change the past. That we can only look at the now and plan for the future the best way we know how.”
“Correct. And right now, I want you, Draco Malfoy, to remember that you don’t scare me. It’s quite the opposite, actually.” She looked up then, her dark eyes pulling him into her orbit. “You remind me every day of our ability to change for the better.”
The light in his eyes that had been briefly extinguished this evening flickered back to life as he gazed at her. The tension in his jaw released and the breath he took buoyed him back to the surface. It wouldn’t do to dwell on the dead, though he would never forget his friend and the times they shared.
“You’re right.”
“I know I’m right.”
This time, he couldn’t hold back the upward curl of his lips, and he leaned down to press his forehead to hers. “How does Head Girl want to deal with my infraction?”
“Follow me for the rest of my rounds tonight and then escort me to my quarters. You can make it up to me then.” She raised an eyebrow suggestively, before pulling back and spinning around to continue her patrol.
Giving a final parting nod over his shoulder at the wall, he turned to follow Hermione Granger. She strode confidently down the hallway, back straight and curly ponytail swinging from side to side like some kind of guiding beacon to his floundering heart. Toad girl. Mudblood. Insufferable know-it-all. Prettiest bird at the ball. Hero. Head Girl. Friend. Girlfriend. Lover.
WC 653
#dramione#dramione prompt#harry potter fanfiction#harry potter flashfic#draco malfoy x hermione granger#dhr fanfiction#draco malfoy#hermione granger
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These calls accompany Victor’s Confrontation Date, and set the premise of the date itself. So, I’m posting them first~ ❤️
⌚ This post contains detailed spoilers for content yet to be released on the global server! ⌚
•─────⋅◍♡◍⋅─────•
【1st Call】
[Note]: This call takes place some time before the date, and is crucial for the premise of the date—
—
Victor: Didn’t you say you’d be working overtime?
MC: Yeah–– ahh–– can you not hear me typing vigorously?
Victor: All I can hear is a certain someone’s anguished wailing in search of excuses to avoid work.
Victor: If you have the time to call me for crying, why not finish up your work faster and come home?
MC: Can I understand this sentence as CEO Victor wishes that I come home sooner?
Victor: [laughs helplessly] I see that your comprehension ability still needs improvement.
MC: Sob, sob. Victor, you’re so cruel. I’m tired and want to goof off for a while. Just talk with me and give me some motivation.
Victor: Oh? Who was the one that righteously declined my offer to have dinner together this afternoon, claiming that no temptation could shake her determination to work hard tonight?
MC: …I’m really a dummy.
Victor: [chuckles softly] That self-reflection was done quite fast.
MC: I’ve been reflecting on it all evening. This is more than just dinner. It means I’ve tacitly allowed work to take away our time together.
Victor: Seeing how you’re babbling away so vigorously, it seems like you’re not tired.
Victor: However, your mental state does need to be paid attention to.
MC: So, when this busy spell is over, let’s go to the moon!!
Victor: [indulgent, dramatic sigh] Weren’t we talking about going to Mars yesterday?
MC: Let’s go! We’ll go everywhere! Let’s travel around space!
Victor: [exceedingly doting laugh] Sure. Where else do you wanna go?
MC: There’s a new concept of a role-playing game focusing on “confrontation.” Hehe, I wanna play it with you.
Victor: Is it on Earth?
MC: …in Loveland City. No, I’m being serious about this! I just stumbled upon a recommendation for it on a review website and found it intriguing.
MC: Shall we go and relax together when the time comes?
Victor: Are you sure this “confrontation” game, as you mentioned, is relaxing?
MC: Blowing off the steam can be a form of relaxation too. Besides, we don’t get to participate in activities like this often, so it could be a nice change of pace to try it out occasionally.
Victor: Then go ahead and make a reservation. I have time after this spell.
MC: Great! I’ve already entered our names the moment you said yes!
MC: Oh yes, this game’s duration is three days and takes place in a Manor. The game organizers will take care of the accommodations and meals.
Victor: [knowing soft laugh] You’re very skilled at diverting the conversation from the main point.
Victor: Well, it’s good anyway. Three days should be enough for a certain someone to blow off her steam.
—
—
【2nd Call】
This call takes place after the events of the date:
—
Victor: Weren’t you off playing with that group of college students? It ended so quickly?
MC: Don’t mention it… these students have too much energy. I ran out to catch my breath.
MC: Victor, you know, the script we played today in the murder mystery game is very similar to the ancient-style one we played a few years ago!
MC: The one where you played the role of the King of Liang. You still remember, right?
–
[Tidbits]: MC is referring to their 2018 Qixi date (Qixi Festival Date on EN)!
–
Victor: A certain dummy didn’t let the cat out of the bag immediately and get discovered by others, did she?
MC: Don’t underestimate me! I effortlessly uncovered the assassin in no time!
MC: However, it was over quickly ‘cause the script was too simple. They didn’t find it satisfying enough and are already preparing to move on to the next one.
MC: But I’m a little tired and don’t want to play anymore…
Victor: Then just tell them no.
MC: Uhh, I feel a little shy about it. Also, if I leave, there will be fewer people, and they will need to find other people…
Victor: Don’t say no, then.
MC: Sob, sob. But I’m tired! And I really miss you–– I miss you so much––
Victor: Ah, it must be really hard for you then.
Victor: Despite missing me so much, you still went out to play with those college students?
MC: Hehe, Victor, if you’re feeling jealous, you can just say it directly~
MC: Didn’t I ask you before, and you said you didn’t wanna play?
Victor: That’s not the same thing.
Victor: Some people “only value others for their own advancement and discard them once they are no longer useful.”
Victor: You must have called me only because you couldn’t find any other reasons, right?
MC: You really do know me so well~ TUT If I were to say that I have to work overtime, it’d be a bit too abrupt. After all, I had already told them I had a lot of free time recently.
MC: After mulling it over, it seemed like my boyfriend could be the only solution. Could you play the role of my clingy and cute boyfriend––
Victor: [LMAO the way he cuts her off] I am your boyfriend. There’s no need for me to play the role of one.
Victor: So I guess I should be taking responsibility for being your “clingy and cute” partner, shouldn’t I?
Victor: Tell them–– your boyfriend thinks that you’re not happy going out by yourself and he wants you to come home as soon as possible––
Victor: I suppose you’ve already had that excuse ready in advance, right?
MC: Says who? At best, it’s just that I really miss my boyfriend, and he really misses me too–– so I’m going back home~
Victor: If that’s the case, why are you reporting to me?
Victor: Go and say goodbye to your little friends.
────────────
#warming y’all up? yeah ig you could say that 🤣🫠 also i’m working on the subtitle simultaneously- so hopefully gonna post it tomorrow~#AKSKDJSKAB THEY ARE SO FRIGGIN CUTE. I CAN'T. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.#WHY ARE YOU TWO SO— AKDJDJDHD—#mlqc victor#mlqc li zeyan#mlqc#mr love victor#mr love queen's choice#恋与制作人#李泽言#love and producer#mlqc cn#mlqc spoilers#mlqc translations
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I started writing this at work because I didn't get any prompt for my flash fic drive yesterday but I still wanted to do a little something, and this is what came out. On the upside, it's longer than my usual flash ficlets so. Yay for my first completed Webgott work :P
Bedtime Stories
They're in bed, settled in for an early evening with the blankets high under their chins. David is half draped over Joe's chest, because he likes having his head in the crook of Joe's neck and also because Joe likes the extra warmth—it's toasty, like this, and David has sweat gliding down his neck, but he enjoys this too much to let it go. Spending their winter evenings like this—him, finishing the day's crosswords in the San Francisco Chronicles, listening to Joe's heartbeat while Joe's fingers run through his hair and make an absolute nest out of it, the latest best seller in his free hand to keep the memories of Bastogne he rarely talks about at bay—very few things in the world compare to this. David will take all the sweat in the world and then some to keep this. He's comfortable, and warm, and beloved, and he's inches from sleep when he feels Joe's breathing speed up.
David looks up, frowning, but Joe's face doesn't look the way he does when the ghosts of the war catch up with him. He is frowning though, shoulders tensing under David's cheek, and David puts his pencil down, reaching up to cup Joe's cheek in his hand. Joe, his eyes still fixed on the book, doesn't pay attention to him until David starts fiddling with the branches of his reading glasses. He takes the kind of deep breath that comes after losing oneself between the pages of a good book, the release of deep focus and tension melting him further against the headboard.
"Am I bothering you, your highness?" He asks, and David puts on the haughtiest air he can muster:
"Yes, as a matter of fact. It's quite the racket in there. Good scene?"
Joe hums, contemplating, and twists until he can land a kiss in the palm of David's hand. He stays there for a moment or two, quiet enough that David wonders if maybe he's gotten lost in thoughts, until he says:
"I'd say efficient, more than good. I don't know that I like it."
David makes a questioning noise. He hasn't followed the plot of Joe's book very closely—Joe started it while David was rushing to meet three separate deadlines and had no mind to remember the details of some rich excentric man's birthday plans. Worse: the book is apparently the sequel to a children's story that David hasn't read, and overall seemed to expect its readers to care quite a bit more about genealogy than David is prepared to. He does nod when Joe asks if he remembers what happened last.
"They're at the inn now, right? With the uh. Ranger man."
Joe snorts, and David has known and loved him long enough by now to hear the implied 'literature studies and that's how you describe a plot. Pathetic.' A few years ago, David would have taken offense at that, but he's too comfortable for bickering tonight, so instead he makes a conceding hum and tilts his head up until Joe rolls his eyes and kisses him.
"Read it to me?" He asks after they pull apart some time later.
"'As they prepared for sleep in the inn at Bree, darkness lay on Buckland. A mist strayed in the dells and along the riverbank. The house at Crickhollow stood silent. Fatty Bolger opened the door cautiously and peered out.'"
Joe has a good reading voice, despite his protests. It's not the kind of voice they'd pick for the job on the radio, but the way he puts gravitas into the narration would put George Luz and his impressions to shame. It's easy for David to relax back down against him and try to imagine what a character named Fatty Bolger might look like.
"'A feeling of fear had been growing on him all day,'" Joe continues, "'and he was unable to rest or go to bed. There was a brooding threat, in the breathless night air. As he stared out into the gloom, a black shadow moved under the trees.'"
David's heart beat picks up just as Joe's does, his spine stiffening with the memory of countless guard rotations—the fight against exhaustion, the knowledge that in the dark every shadow could spell his death. The terror shooting through him with every crack of a branch or rustle of a leaf.
"'The gate seemed to open of its own accord, and close again without a sound,'" Joe continues, his free hand moving from David's head down to his shoulder. "'Terror seized him. He shrank back, and for a moment he stood trembling in the hall... then he shut and locked he door.'"
David's hand abandons its position on Joe's cheek and goes to grip Joe's hand instead. There is a tremor in his knees: the dull shock of landing on damp grass in the night, machine guns roaring in the distance—the rush of getting the 'chute off, pulling his rifle into position. Staring frantically into the pitch darkness of Normandy and desperately resisting the urge to shoot at the first thing that moves.
"'The night deepened,'" Joe continues, the rhythm of his ribcage against David's back speeding up again, his voice growing more tense by the second. "'There came the soft sound of horses led with stealth along the lane. Outside the gate, they stopped, and three black figures entered, like shades of night creeping across the ground. One went to the door.'"
Another night, another building to clear. Rushing to the door, trying to think about what to do—grenade, wait, rush in—rather than what could be waiting there.
"'One to the corner of the house on either side, and there they stood, as still as the shadows of stone while the night went slowly on. The house and the quiet trees seemed to be waiting breathlessly.'"
The dissonance between the quiet and the fear. The knowledge that peace was still there, just out of reach behind gossamer curtains.
"'There was a faint stir in the leaves, and a cock crowed far away. The cold hour before dawn was passing.'"
Waiting in a ditch, with dozens of better armed men a scant few feet away from realizing they could hose the lot of them down in less than a minute. Dreading the only orders Winters could possibly give in that situation, and knowing there would be nothing for it but to execute them anyway.
"'The figure by the door moved. In the dark without a moon or stars, a drawn blade gleamed, as if a chill light had been unsheathed. There was a blow—'"
Something knocks against the front door, and David jumps so hard his head collides with Joe's chin, whose yelp echoes in the little bedroom. They sit together for a moment, the fingers of their clasped hands tight around each other as they slow their breathing down as best as they can. There's another knock, and this time David only flinches before he straightens up. He glances at Joe behind him and finds him pale and drawn, the familiar furrow of his anger cutting deep between his eyebrows as he grips David's hand tighter than ever.
"I'll get it," David says as their landlady starts calling for them at the door.
He brings Joe's hand to his lips and presses a kiss on the back of it, just so he can remind himself where he is—where they are—before he makes his way through the tiny apartment, vaguely combing through his hair until he opens the door. Mrs. Obradovic startles, and immediately falls into a concerned frown:
"Is everything alright my dear? You look like you've seen a ghost!"
The truth of it is both much sillier and infinitely more serious than Mrs. Obradovic thinks, but David doesn't feel up to baring his soul to his octogenarian proprietor, no matter how kindly she is, so he makes himself laugh.
"I almost thought I did. How may I help you?"
She points down to a small bag on the floor.
"Josep finally came home with the coal," she says, still visibly concerned. "I'd have waited until tomorrow, but I know your Joe doesn't do well with the cold."
"Thank you, Mrs. Obradovic," David says, sincere through the headiness of calming down after an abrupt fright. "You're an angel."
"Nonsense, nonsense. Now, you boys have a good night, and let me know if you need anything else, yes?"
"We will. Thank you again," David says, and finds himself giving her a warmer smile than he normally does, touched by her continued concern over Joe's well being.
He closes the door behind her, locks it, and deals with the coal before he makes his way back to the bedroom, dusting his hands off as he walks. The book is back on Joe's bedside table when he enters, red eye staring at David from the wide black circle on the cover, and the spindly red runes almost feel like they're about to start moving. On the bed, Joe is no longer as pale as the novel's cover, which David decides to take as a good sign as he crawls up onto Joe's lap and takes his face between his hands.
"So," he says, pressing his forehead against Joe's and taking deep breaths to calm himself down. "I see what you meant by efficient."
"Yeah."
There is a brief silence, and then Joe sighs and goes soft between David's palms, pliant like he is after nightmares finally let go of him, usually several hours past dawn. David draws him in and nuzzles his nose, dipping in to plant little kisses on Joe's cheeks. On his hips, he feels Joe's fingers tighten again, almost to the point of bruising, until Joe's arms wrap around his waist and pull him in tight.
"Fuck," Joe says eventually, the slip into German more familiar now that David finally convinced him there was no reason to punish himself for what the Nazis did. "Fuck, it's just a fucking book."
"Well, at least you're not the one who nearly broke his lover's nose over it."
That startles a laugh out of Joe, and he tilts his head up to kiss David's lips. They don't kiss like that often—usually, Joe prefers to tug David downward to negate their height difference. But David likes it when he gets to kiss Joe from above, likes the opportunity to cradle his face with his hands, the excuse to treat Joe like the precious thing he is without being accused of thinking he's fragile. They lose themselves in the kiss for several long minutes, and by the end David is almost back to the the mellow state he was in before they started reading.
"Right," Joe says, picking up the book from the bedside table and tossing it to the other end of the room, "Goodbye, Tolkien."
"I don't know," David says, eyes drawn to where the first few letters of 'Fellowship' shimmer in the dim light of Joe's bedside lamp, "I'm intrigued now."
"Intrigued?" Joe repeats, incredulous. "You nearly shat yourself."
"Yeah, well, so did you," David shoots back, soothing the sting with a kiss on Joe's nose. "What can I say, I'm braver about fiction than reality."
"Like I didn't know that," Joe scoffs, and David rolls his eyes.
"I'm serious, Liebling. I'm going to read it."
"Right."
"Just...maybe not at night," David admits, and Joe's face goes from gently mocking to purely fond as he squeezes his arms around David's waist.
"Don't worry," he says, visibly going for a joking tone, "I'll hug you better if you scare yourself."
Joke's on him, though, because that's exactly what David was angling for.
ETA: Cleaned up (and longer!) Version now available on AO3!
#Band of Brothers#Webgott#David Webster#Joe Liebgott#Also I rewatched FOTR and I'm about to re-listen to the Phil Dragrash audiobooks#and I remember how this passage made me fling my laptop almost off the bed when I first listened to it#very precisely at the end of the line Joe stops at in fact xD#So yeah#fun one#10n#fic: bedtime story#15n
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I played Soul Void : Redux.
starting this off with : this is a good review and a happy thing
i am putting it under a read more for spoiler purposes uwu
about 5 or more years ago, i first played Soul Void. i found it on tumblr, and thought 'wow, that looks interesting' and showed it to my at the time GF
we both sat down and played it, me watching her at first, before deciding i wanted to play it along side her and go through the experience
getting into this game, immediately i began to see parts of myself in it. struggles i've had, words i've heard from others and from myself. i looked at the characters around me and felt them resonate with me and i felt.
feelings. sorrow, grief. the want to help, compassion and the hopeful feeling of 'don't give up, it will get better!'
i wanted to help them, and in turn by the end of the game, wanted to help myself
that was 5 years ago
i haven't played since, and not for a lack of not wanting to, just not feeling i needed to. i still remembered The Seeker, i remembered how The Leech and The Waiting were. i remembered how it felt, and i continued on.
then i began to forget, but still, i didn't go back. 'not yet', 'i don't need it yet'. it felt like
lately, it's felt like i did. a refresher, a chance to...process? a chance to acknowledge 'hey, these are struggles. these are feelings, but they can be helped. they can get better.
then i saw Redux was coming out. 3-4 months or so ago, i saw the update was set to release July 26, and i waited.
i'd forget for a few weeks, remember, check the date, and then go back to the day to day, only to repeat the pattern a few more times.
yesterday, i remembered. yesterday, i checked the date.
yesterday after D&D, i threw myself into playing again. and it was everything i remembered it to be.
it feels, oddly enough, like a medicine. a kind of salve that stings and soothes at the same time. my mental health isn't (and hasn't been of late) the greatest. victories in some places, loses in others. but progress, i believe, all the same.
going into Soul Void, i get to see all of these people doing their best. encouraging each other, the player and myself to do our best.
seeing The Waiting, The Husk, The Seeker. The Leech. all of them
new faces too, people i hadn't spoken to before! people i had yet to befriend! places i hadn't' seen!
i stepped into the game and hearing new music, reading new dialogue, having a chance to laugh and feel pain and sympathy and 'oh girl, SAME' energy.
getting a chance to stare evenly at the Grim, to find them less scary and more funny this time around.
getting to help The Seeker.
getting to HUG The Seeker.
getting the necklace. having it in the real world. the message behind it.
(ngl i'd pay some amount of money for that necklace as merch, by the way, if not try to juts make it myself. just tell me how it looks and by golly i will figure out some kind of way)
but i sat, and i loved, and i teared up and cried. i felt an ache in my chest that was soothed the further i went in
i listened to my own words being so automatically offered
'you'll be okay'
it'll be alright'
'this will pass'
'you'll get better'
offered to pixels on a screen that held a reflective piece of something i can see inside of myself, and it reminds me to share those with myself.
Soul Void is a game that sits in a special place in my heart. along side shows like Inuyasha and games like Undertale. it is a game that changed my life in an important time, in an important way.
for years to come, i will revisit it. for years to come, i will remember how every one looks at the end of the game, when you've helped them all. when you've helped yourself.
i will be drawing art of Hugging Seeker.
(also i wish we could hug more people, like The Waiting and The Leech. im not upset we cant, i just also wish we could.)
((also also does any one else have such an emotional attachment to The Waiting because i stg i kinda wish we could just sit with him, as the veins stop pulsing? so he's just not...alone..? but idk that's me))
@kadabura from the bottom of my heart and soul, thank you for making this game. Thank you for updating it.
thank you for all the work you've put into it, and for making it a free to play game.
thank you for sharing it with the world, as this game is one of the most beautiful and cherished experiences i've had in my 30 some odd years of life.
thank you for making such a beautiful story and journey that can allow people like me to see kindness for ourselves
i was originally going to send an ask, but tumblr just does not have enough space in one ask for me to express my love for this game.
Thank you so much. i hope your days are filled with the joy and strength to keep getting new ones, and that your nights are filled with dreams of laughter and music
for any one who may be reading this and NOT know what this beautiful game is
and the beautiful soul who made it
Thank you @kadabura
Be safe and Be at peace <3
#justatext#justapost#soul void#soul void redux#kadabura#my two cents#this is a long thing and i am normally too shy to do this#but this feels important to me so im doing it#hopefully it doesmt come off weird haha;;#it also bares mentioning this game helped one of my daughters as well#she use to feel that she could only make bad things or do bad things#but this game showed her that horror and darkness can be beautiful too#that it can be kind and healing and helpful#she does alot of things relative to stardew valley now but with horror and im so proud of her#this game is important to me and my loved ones and i will continue to sing its praises until this mortal coil expires#also im serious aabout the necklace though i love that so much???#like fr if that becomes merch i will drop some amount of money for it#or at the very least if a design is released i will try to make one#i might try to make one any way given it has a description#i cant wear metal but by golly i will get leather thread > : ) ive done it before#im being al ittle silly but its becaues i just really love the ending okay#my discord icon is literally the leech and the waiting rn no joke
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Part 3: Radical
8 years later…
Four-story Brick House
Austin, Texas.
I nudge Jared trying to wake him up.
"Darlin' wake up, I need to take a shower," I said.
Jared just mumbles and pulls me closer. I have no choice but to elbow him in the stomach. That does the trick, and he releases me.
I rushed from our king-size bed to the bathroom. I barely made it.
It's getting harder to walk these days. Our ever-growing family has something to do with that. Little kicks interrupt my thoughts.
Jared and I are expecting twins again, this time, boys. Twins don't run on either side of our family so it's a mystery. How do we keep conceiving twins?
I quickly take a shower and can't be late again. I've got to drop our girls off. Natalia and Nina just started third grade.
Where did the time go?
It feels like I was just yesterday when I proposed to Jared.
We didn't have some lavish ceremony, just an intimate one on our Texas Ranch.
It was just perfect for us.
"Y/N, the girls are going to wake up soon. I've got to shower to darlin’”
After drying my hair. I throw on my robe and then dash out of the bathroom. swiftly throwing the towel then grabbing the first things I find in my side of the dresser and closet. Not bothering to brush my hair. It is the last thing on my to-do list right now.
I make my way downstairs to find the girls already dressed. They are just waiting for me to make breakfast.
"Okay little wildflowers just hang on, I'll go get our breakfast ready."
I said.
"We can wait Mom no rush." Natalia and Nina said in unison.
With, the way the girls are. I have no doubt they'll be presenting as alphas when it's time. Already so headstrong and always speaking their mind.
They overheard parents bad-mouthing us. They told them off when that didn't work. They grabbed the teacher right away.
I place the French toast and sausage in front of them.
They methodically get to eating their breakfast. That's when my husband finally joined us. Looking amazing as always. Jared is wearing my favourite purple shirt and a pair of black jeans. The shirt he wore in episodes that held special meaning for me from Supernatural. I mentioned it in passing once. Then one day out of the blue he wears it on one of our date nights. It warms my heart that he remembers those little details. He kisses me lightly on the cheek before putting the kid's lunches in their backpacks. Then he joins us for breakfast. After the girls almost got an eyeful when they weren't feeling well years ago. While we were in my office. We try to keep public displays of affection down to a minimum.
Our lives have changed so much since we met. Jared started producing and starring in a show called Walker. A story about a widower returning home after stent undercover and adjusting back to his life with his family. My doctor that was there at the hospital when I got injured got into acting. So Dr. Cortese, Genevive or Gen as she prefers plays his late wife Emily.
As for me, I've long since left acting. I'm writing books or scripts. It gives me more time to look after the household.
I love the life we've built something I thought I'd never have.
Meeting each other taught Jared and me. It's not a monster beneath our skin our reversed presentations but a blessing.
#beneath the skin#Omega!Jared Padalecki x Alpha!Reader#supernatural fanfiction#moosekateer13#Smut#Angst#A/B/O#monster#skillet
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find the word tag game!
thank you for tagging me @hallowedfury ! i hope to see more of your writing ~
i just tagged a lot of people yesterday so i wont tag anyone again... i don't know if its okay to tag a lot or not- any way! here is the script!
my words were: close, content , and minute!
Minute -
“what is I supposed to do”
“if your worth teaching you’ll figure it out. ill give you 5 minutes”
five minutes and I didn’t even know what it was? I held it up and looked at the lines, they were circuits, but they didn’t make sense. they looped in a circle instead of being released. however, I don’t think making an exit line was the point. it seemed too intricate for an oversight like that.
“Three minutes”
I traced my fingers over it before placing it in my palm, slowly I levitated it into the air. Cassandra smirked.
“you think that’s the right answer?”
“I hope so”
the pull of radiance into my body made Cassandras eyes dart to my hands. I pushed every cell in my body to the limit, lighting crackled around my head and the smell of static filled the air.
“huh”
A thunder crack could be heard. It shook the furniture in the room and a bolt of lightning shot from my palm, it was larger and stronger than any bolt that the skies could make and illuminated the room a wash of light. With enough force to blow a hole through the neighbor’s house it shot forward, only to immediately disappear where the disk was standing. There was no flowback, no ambient radiance. every particle was now sitting within the disk.
“it’s hard to fix something that isn’t broken, but I hope I proved myself.”
Content(s)
“three years ago each Sentinel received a tome. no one but the Sentinel’s knows the exact contents, but each seems to be different. rumor is ALEA received something similar. to be honest I wouldn’t know about it if had it not been for the flaming monstrosity’s that delivered them. those made quite a stir”
Leon sighed and added to his words “ ALEA told the champions roughly what hers said. something is happening. something that will cause the world to remember. she is afriad the game will resume once more.”
Alex blurted out, standing from her chair “wait you two know about the damn thing?!”
Close(d)
“oh, I’m exited. especially if it does what I think.” I placed the freshly wrought hand on the stone and started to pull it into myself. I could feel it run through what used to be the staff, and I felt how deep it actually went, it felt like every vein in my body now had an edge of the aucculus to it. it works. I kicked it up a notch and pulled with all the power I could. even Alex was entranced, and she should have been able feel it. but just like the first bloom the plants wilted and every single particle left the stone. all of it was stored in me but I didn’t feel like I had absorbed anything more than a single mote. I turned and closed my eyes, both hands outstretched like scales. I intended to make a small flame in each palm. Alex's gasp confirmed my theory. when my eyes were open a candle like flame was on my right, and my left was a ball of blue hot fire, heating the skin over me. “I don’t think ill miss the other arm too much.” a smile crept across my face. I hadn’t lost anything, I gained something that could change the face of magic forever.
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LEGO On A Budget 2024 #3: 60401 Construction Steamroller & 71805 Jay's Mech Battle Pack
Turns out, going to college on a free day can lead to a lucky break. Shopping at 9:30am is a pretty magical feeling considering my sleeping issues that kinda prevent me from even waking up before like, 10am, without setting an alarm. In fact, I doubly scored this week, but this second haul is a lil secret for later. Stay tuned!
LEGO City - 60401 Construction Steamroller
City's back and it's back in style. Now that we're outta the 4+ territory, this is when we really get some nostalgia goin'. I remember having the very FIRST City construction set that released in 2005- and I actually found the manual yesterday in one of my old LEGO bins! Certainly made this build more appropiate.
Firstly, this box sets the record straight and absolutely dwarfs the other €10 boxes for the time being. I'm pretty sure it's dimensions are like, twice as thick as the regular sizes i've tackled so far. It's still a light box though, there's only 78 pieces in here, very slightly more than the boxes from last time.
Let's talk about the pieces themselves. I did nooooot know there were some usually Technic pieces involved in all this. For a 5+ set, that's rather awesome and means that the complexity can be just a bit higher. With this build, it's of course kinda limited to allowing the big wheels on the front to fit.
And yyyyeah, that's kinda it. This is the definition of okay. It's a bit more of an elaborate build which is appreciated, but it's not exactly wowing me. All it does is remind me of the golden oldies from 2 decades ago. This compares neither positively or negatively.
Will say though. It's nice that the construction worker is super easy to fit in the steamroller via the retractable roof. Might wanna call it 'above average' because of that alone. Speaking of above average...
LEGO Ninjago - 71805 Jay's Mech Battle Pack
Okay, so, I never actually uh, GREW UP with Ninjago, here. I always dismissed it as something that wasn't for me and kinda looked down on those that did. I also ate out of my nose.
Time to set the record straight. Although those small, differently shaped boxes still aren't something i'm gonna get right away (though the chances of me getting them after the series is finished are a lot higher now), I certainly was eager to check out what i've missed out all these years.
And, I mean, I like it. I think this is one of the cases where you don't really get the full idea of it's quality if you don't buy a more expensive set, or multiple other cheaper ones. Still, the mech's got some meat on it's bones. It's decently substantial and required a more elaborate 78 pieces to put together. Very bendable too. I'd say it's less flexible than Doc Ock was, but in return, it's also a lot larger and also comes with those nice projectile shooters.
I have nothing to say about these minifigs in terms of how accurate they are to the Ninjago 'lore', though I like that they all wield weapons, have head armor and can swap their facial expression for maximum smugness on Master Lloyd. Is that accurate to the show? I'll believe that untill someone proves me wrong.
So overall, this is a very competent set for posing and I think I could have had quite a lot of fun with my imagination way back when. And that's good enough.
Current rankings:
In my opinion, the Construction Steamroller was a nice throwback and has an interesting set of pieces included, but the finished result isn't doing that much for me. It's solid, yet unspectacular. Honestly, i'm not even sure if it would've beaten the Fire Rescue Motorcycle if it wasn't more or less obsoleted by Spidey's bike from the Marvel set.
Jay's Mech Battle Pack is a pretty rad set and comes pretty close to toppling the Marvel set, i'd say, yeah. I think it's up to your own preference whether you prefer pop culture over LEGO's own IP, and whether you want more smaller builds or one big boi build instead. I'm giving the nod to Marvel as I find it utilises the limited amount of pieces a little better in my opinion, but it was a close call between the two.
1. Marvel - 76275 Motorcycle Chase: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock
2. Ninjago - 71805 Jay's Mech Battle Pack
3. City - 60401 Construction Steamroller
4. City 4+ - 60410 Fire Rescue Motorcycle
5. Minecraft - 21251 Steve's Desert Expedition
6. City 4+ - 60399 Race Car
Next week, a surprise intermission with the aforementioned secret, as well as me looking really fuckin' goofy at the toy store. See ya soon!
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First off, I want to thank all of you who have made purchases of the game, all of you who are following me now, and anyone who just comes here in the future and potentially sees this post. Your interest and support mean a lot to me (just as the same does for other creators out there). I just published the game yesterday two days ago, I don't have any updates to announce at this time (although as always I have bunches of projects being worked on, some related to this, some not), but today I'll tell a little story about some of the philosophy I used when deciding to make this game. I want to talk briefly about Sword of Kadash.
What is Sword of Kadash? I'm not surprised if you don't know that game. Very few people these days do. This was a computer game released way back in 1985 by the now-defunct publisher Dynamix. I played the Commodore 64 version. It is a top-down action RPG which has you wandering a large dungeon, gathering weapons and armor and scrolls and items and fighting off enemies along the way. There are hidden passages, invisible walls, traps and secrets to find. It's a long game and very difficult to complete. There's no story except for brief tidbits at the very beginning and very end of the game. I love it to this day, although it has been many years since I last wandered its halls.
What does Sword of Kadash have to do with Dextra? Nothing. The two games have virtually no overlap in terms of game mechanics, visual stylings, lore or intended audience. However, Sword of Kadash served as an inspiration for Dextra by reminding me, decades later, that a game which likely had modest sales and was almost forgotten about by the public at large can still have significance, even if only for a select few individuals. Most of us know at least one game (or book or movie) like Sword of Kadash, which has long since fallen out of popularity or even common knowledge, yet still sparks in us that sense of wonder or thrill we felt when we experienced it. That was the goal I held close in my thoughts as I worked on Dextra. The tabletop RPG market is a highly competitive realm now, especially in this era of ready self-publishing, and a rules-light game with a focus on telling stories instead of character theorizing and combat is at least something of a niche entry. Dextra is unlikely to ever be a chart-topping title. But it could serve as an inspiration to someone else, fill someone with that sense of wonder, demonstrate to them that their success doesn't have to be measured purely in terms of the number of sales achieved, but in the impact you can have on even a select few individuals.
If, twenty years from now, even a handful of people think back upon Dextra and say, "I remember some really cool times with that, I wish I could make people feel that way," I will have succeeded. And then I hope they go on to do the same thing themselves.
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Eagles - Their Greatest Hits (1971 - 1975) / Eagles Greatest Hits Volume 2
Every music fan remembers the first few bands or artists that got them into music, as well as the bands or artists that they latched onto after they got into music. I can remember getting into music like it was yesterday, even though it was actually around 17 years ago [insert an “I’m old” joke here]. The first album that I ever picked up was The All-American Rejects’ 2005 LP, Move Along, and I still have that copy today. It’s not an album I play anymore, as I feel like it hasn’t aged well, but I still listen to it here and there, and I have the album to remind myself of a simpler time. I kept it, because it was the first album I remember going to the store and getting myself. I heard a few of the songs on TV and I really wanted to hear the album. Fast forward a couple of years, and by that point, a few more albums came out that really influenced my early years of getting into music, such as Panic! At The Disco’s A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, and My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade, but 2007 is the year that changed everything for me. That was the year that Fall Out Boy released their third album, Infinity On High. This isn’t a review on that album, and this isn’t even going to be a review at all (I’ll get to why here in a minute, don’t worry), but that album blew me away when I first heard it. It still does today, too -- I absolutely love that album, and it’s in the running for all my time favorite. I have a couple of other albums that also want that top spot, and it changes depending on the day, but that’s the first album I ever fell in love with.
I tell that story, and I tell you that all information, because that same year, right around the spring / summertime, I remember getting heavily into classic rock (which is just rock music from the 1980s and before, “classic rock” didn’t actually become a thing until the early 80s when radio stations realized they could get some listeners by playing songs from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s). My parents had a decent collection of greatest hits from certain bands, such as Creedence Clearwater Revival, Boston, Journey, Styx, Hall & Oates, and finally, The Eagles. Out of all of these bands, I only really connected with a few of them, even though I enjoy all of these bands to some degree, and one of those were the Eagles. I’ve always been a huge fan of them, even back in the mid-00s when I was first getting into music, as well as discovering music from before my time. I’ve grown to really love older music, and a lot of my taste is just that, so I find myself going back to the classics, even when I’m diving headfirst into newer music. I find myself listening to these bands and albums when the new releases are running dry, which seems to be happening a lot in the last few weeks, but I digress. The Eagles is just one of those bands that I latched onto, and every time I listen to certain songs from their discography, I’m taken back to that time, just like I listened to them for the first time. Their brand of folk, soft-rock, country-rock, and arena-rock is incredible, and it’s so influential to many bands that came after them in the 70s and 80s. Even now, you can hear a lot of bands that had to have been influenced by the Eagles, even if they have never named them as a distinct influence.
The reason that I said that this wasn’t a review, or at least a proper one, is that I wanted to just talk about a band I really like, especially their two greatest hits albums that came out in mid-70s and early 80s. I’ve reviewed these albums in the past, but I did that maybe like seven years ago, and my reviews weren’t very good then, so I wanted to talk about them again, especially now that I’m older and appreciate these albums / bands a lot more. Basically, I just want to fanboy over The Eagles for a little bit. I’ve actually had this sitting in my drafts for the last week, because it’s like, how do you a band like this justice? I’ve been listening to these greatest hits albums almost nonstop for the last couple of weeks, and I’ve been watching and listening to a lot of stuff about them, just to gain more knowledge about them, but even that wouldn’t do it justice. Their story is just as interesting as their music, if not slightly more interesting at times, because of the ups and downs that they’ve had in terms of their members. The band formed out of being Linda Ronstadt’s backing band, releasing their first album in 1972, but ultimately breaking up by 1980. In that short amount of time, they went through a few lineup changes that also reflected in their sound (most notably guitarist Joe Walsh joining the band in 1976 right before the writing and recording of their magnum opus Hotel California), and they released a multitude of hit singles and albums, a lot of which are still in heavy rotation today. You most likely have heard some of their songs, such as “Hotel California,” “Life In The Fast Lane,” “Best Of My Love,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Take It Easy,” “Witchy Woman,” “:Peaceful Easy Feeling,” and many more. You’ve most likely heard some of these songs and didn’t realize it.
They’re often considered to be one of the best bands of all time, not just from pure sales numbers, but because their sound was so unique, at least compared to other bands at the time. They took this country-rock sound that was starting to bubble up, and they ran with it, especially with a lot of their early work. Their use of five-part harmonies was also another thing that so many people loved about them. If you want a good example of how well they make it work, and how amazing they sound altogether, check out “Seven Bridges Road” from their second greatest hits album, Vol 2, where they recorded a live version from their 1980 live album before their breakup. They used to sing that song as a warmup before shows, but people really wanted to hear it live, so they started singing it. When it comes to sales numbers, though, they’re a big one. The first greatest hits album, entitled Their Greatest Hits (1971 - 1975), is really interesting, because the Eagles themselves had no idea it was even happening, and they also didn’t feel the need for a greatest hits album when they were only getting started (kind of funny they’d say that, but I digress). Luck just happened to be on their side, because their first greatest hits album was the selling album of the 20th century. It’s also the second highest album of all time, right behind Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Hotel California, their 1976 LP, is also one of the highest selling albums of all time, so they have two albums in the top ten. Personally, when it comes to the greatest hits albums, the first one is a lot stronger, but the second one also features some of their later hits, including the title track to the album of the same name and “Life In The Fast Lane.” They released one more album before their breakup, 1979′s The Long Run, and it’s a decent little record, but the songs from that album that are on the greatest hits album are the best ones, it’s just that their first volume is stronger overall.
There’s just so much to say about The Eagles, and I haven’t even talked about a lot of the individual members, especially the main two, Glenn Frey and Don Henley, who are the two that most people remember, unless you also count Joe Walsh in there, since he had a pretty successful solo career after they broke up (they all did, in fact). I just wanted to keep this retrospective somewhat brief, although this is long enough as it is, so I’m going to wrap it up here, but these two albums are utterly fantastic. There are some bands that are “greatest hits” bands, and I’d argue that the Eagles is one of them. What I mean by that is that you just need the greatest hits, minus maybe a few deep cuts from their actual albums, but the hits are really their best songs. Most bands have a lot of deep cuts from their discography, but the Eagles have banger after banger on these albums, and if you listen to these two, that’s all you’ll need. The Eagles are one of the best, most influential, and most important bands of all time, and I just wanted to highlight them. I might do this from time to time, or if I’m listening to a classic album that I don’t have anything negative to say about (and why would I have anything negative to say about them; they’re classic rock royalty), I might just write something that shoots the shit about it. We can have a casual conversation about it, ultimately just talking about why this record and/or artist is really good. I have a few records in the pipeline that I’d like to talk about, including Bob Dylan’s greatest hits, Joni Mitchell’s Blue, and a few other records that I’ve been really listening to lately. I really wanted to talk about The Eagles, just because I absolutely love this band and I’ve loved them for the last 15 years, give or take. These songs still sound just as great now as I first heard them all of those years ago, and that’s the best kind of music for me.
#the eagles#eagles#hotel california#life in the fast lane#take it easy#witchy woman#peaceful easy feeling#best of my love#don henley#glenn frey#joe walsh#country-rock#rock#folk#folk-rock#jackson browne#linda ronstadt#classic rock
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Never Even Watched a Western
Thomas recognised her face, but he couldn't believe it was her. The memories in his head of Mrs May Musa, his old secondary school maths teacher couldn't possibly match with the woman who was stood in front of him. The platform cowgirl boots, the chaps with absolutely nothing under them exposing everything, the American flag bikini top and the hot pink cowgirl hat. Mrs Musa was a 50-something Nigerian-British maths teacher, why would she ever dress like this?
"Howdy, boss. Who's this y'all have brought with you?" This woman said to Max, her attempt at a southern American accent so ludicrous Thomas suspected it was intentional on Max's part. The voice also dripped with an... artificial vapidity.
"You remember Tommy, he was in your class 12 years ago along with me?" Well, Max clearly knew they had to establish that before Thomas would believe it.
"Oh, Tommy, look how much y'all've grown!" May said "And while we're looking at growth... y'all like what y'all see? Does it make you... grow some more?" she squished her breasts together.
"Tommy's more into the derrière, May."
"Well I've got plenty of that to spare." May winked at Thomas as she turned around, bent over and looked back "Y'all can ride this cowgirl whenever y'all like."
"What is the point of this?" Thomas asked Max.
"It's just a demonstration of my power."
"You turned Mrs Musa into... this just to brag?"
"Would you have believed me about the extent of what I can do if I'd have done something less elaborate?"
"I know I didn't believe them yesterday." May added.
"Yesterday?"
"Yeah. Don't worry, Tom. She'll be back to her old self by tomorrow."
"What? But I wanna be ridden like the good cowgirl I am! I've not been ridden since my divorce!" May whined.
"Don't worry, May. Tom will treat you properly." Max said giving her butt a smack. "Especially after he gets into his costume."
"What? Max, I did not..." Thomas trailed off as he felt Max's influence take hold "Oh, that feels weird."
"That's what I said when Max did that to me!" May giggled "Oh, this cowgirl is getting ridden tonight."
"Y'all bet you are." Thomas said, his attempt at the accent made Max chuckle. Thomas stripped naked before going get changed into his 'cowboy' outfit. Already fully erect much to May's clear joy.
"Mmm, I always knew he had the hots for li'l old me... and I knew you had the hots for him." May giggled at Max who just smiled at her.
"I guess teens never had the ability to hide that stuff very well." Max chuckled "That's why I chose you for this, honestly." May's eyes suddenly turned pleading
"Will you really make me that boring ol' maths teacher?"
"You'll be regular old Ms Musa again tomorrow, yes." May pouted, Max placed a hand on her butt "However you'll be back to being under my power again soon enough. Don't make too many plans for next month."
"Yee-haw! I can't wait!" Max couldn't help but smile. In truth, they were originally just planning to let May go completely, a simple demonstration to Tom just what kind of power was being used on him, but this enthusiasm made it clear the 55-year old woman had been horny and dreaming of a release for a while.
Thomas walked back over to the two of them. His 'outfit' was even less than May's. Just cowboy boots, a bright blue hat. "Its time for the hoedown, yee-haw!" Thomas yelled before thrusting into May. He clearly didn't actually know what 'hoedown' meant, but Max always found that made this far hotter.
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{ 𝐂𝐀𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃 }
𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐀𝐅𝐄, 𝐒𝐄𝐎𝐔𝐋, Seoul, SK
October 28th, 2023
w. 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐔
There’s really nothing like the strong, bitter kick of coffee to wake Jun up in the unpleasant hours of the morning when everything seems irritating and as if it were invented to do nothing but upset him. He’d been trying out the coffee shops surrounding the company building for some months now, and it was only recently that he’d found one that, while perhaps not his favourite in terms of their coffee, was definitely his favourite when it came to baristas. Perhaps there was something other than coffee that could perk a man up in the morning, and it came in the form of a young man with a breathtaking smile, shining eyes, and a cute mop of hair that Jun found himself imagining his fingers buried in most mornings.
Today, he enters as he does most mornings—with his hands thrust deep into the pockets of his large buffer jacket, his chin tucked into the collar to keep the chill out of the neck hole. His ears hurt from the cold, and he’s sure his cheeks are red, as though slapped by the November air. There aren’t too many customers this early in the morning, so as he waits behind the only other person in there, taking their sweet time ordering their drink, he lets himself appreciate the view of the pretty boy behind the counter taking orders and preparing them with skill. While Jun had never worked in a cafe before, he’d bought his own rather obnoxious coffee machine a couple years ago, to make himself drinks before college classes. It had been going largely unused in the past few months, thanks to his new schedule, but he could still follow along with every step of the process that the boy goes through.
When, finally, he reaches the counter, he can’t help but smile, releasing his hands from the confines of his pockets and raising his head to properly look at him. “Morning, can I have my usual?” He asks, just because he likes to know that the barista, Namu, remembers it. He always goes for the same in the mornings, and on the few afternoons he makes time to run in, he gets something different, but always the same for that time of day. This morning, it’s his usual Americano, though no ice, given the temperature outside. He’s not sure he wants to be freezing inside as well as out. “Sorry I didn’t come in yesterday. I missed you.” He knows it’s not necessarily polite to flirt with someone whose job it is to be nice to you, and they can’t just walk away, but Namu’s just too cute, and while it could just be wishful thinking, he had the feeling he didn’t really mind Jun’s ‘friendliness’.
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The One from 8th Grade, almost ten years later
It shouldn't come as a shock every time I bump into someone I used to know; I never moved far away. It's funny how it always pricks at my nerves. I'm reminded of how stupid and dramatic I was as a child.
The last time I bumped into him was nine years ago. About a month ago, I saw him shopping at my job. It took me a couple of seconds to realize that it was him after I greeted him. I knew he recognized me after he said hi back. I rushed to get him out of my line, acting as if he were anybody else.
It's conflicting to see someone you used to like and never dated. I told my friend I still resent him (she asked me why I didn't get his number) for dating my friend when we were in middle school. And to that she replied, "So?" She's right. So? We were kids. It wasn't as if he intentionally meant to hurt me. I never told anyone that I liked him. So I can't blame him, but that doesn't take away the painful memories that I thought I had released.
I never learned how to express interest. Every time I make the smallest move, I'm met with indifference. Then shame. I feel weak when I admit that I'm attracted to someone.
I'm trying really hard to let go of spirituality. But now I'm getting signs from him. I see his initials, hear his name shouted by strangers, and he stared at me in my dream.
Yesterday, I thought I saw the guy who ghosted me as I was walking back to the store from lunch. His nose looked bigger, and he was on the phone, which blocked some of his face. I thought, maybe that's his way of hiding from me in plain sight. I felt so anxious after that. He was with a blonde woman; the girl he wouldn't leave for me. My thoughts spiraled and spiraled. I immediately asked the universe to confirm it was him via the emergency door alarm (I asked three times- it didn't go off). I regressed to the thought I had after the last night I ever saw him:
It can't end like this. This is not how it was supposed to happen.
And this bumping into him yesterday was not how it was supposed to happen either. It's not fair. It's cruel. I was getting better. I keep waiting for things to fall into place and it's not for the best. All it does is keep me in the same place for years. And just when I forget about my painful failures, something drags me back.
Realistically, obsessing over them is unproductive. In my delusions, they each come back and admit that they have always liked me. But I know it's never going to happen and I will secretly wait forever. They get to live their lives, they get to fuck, and be fruitful, while I rot.
Realistically, if I bump into them again, it will be brief and avoidant.
I have to remember that if I have any sort of destiny, it's definitely to be alone. At least I can say it without crying now. Maybe it's because I've been trying to drink less.
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My wonderful women friends
Yesterday was International Women's Day and I wanted to write about how we should uplift each other every day, not just on this day.
As I was writing this piece I was thinking of how blessed I have been in my life with my women friends.
Growing up I was a Tom boy and didn't have many girlfriends, almost all of my friends were guys.
I remember my girls coming home from school telling me all the drama between them and their girlfriends and asking me how I dealt with it growing up. I laughed and told them when you had guy friends you didn't have drama, you had competition, and you had egos but no drama.
I guess that is why I feel I can do anything, the reason that I am so competitive is that it was do or die with the boys. They were not cutting you any slack, keep up or get left behind.
As I got older I realized how female friends filled a different part of your soul. They understood you, they had that ear to listen, they felt your pain, and I had a different connection with them, than I did with my guy friends.
They understood about my marriage problems, my child-rearing problems, being a woman, and trying to be a superwoman, even if you were dying, you would die trying rather than admit defeat.
They got it, they knew your journey and they were always there to lift you up.
I now have older friends, and younger friends, I have Black friends, Spanish friends, Muslim friends, and Jewish friends. I am blessed with a melting pot of amazing women in my life.
I have married friends, single friends, single moms, gay friends, and straight friends.
I have had friends for a few months and friends I've known all my life. I still talk to and see so many of these people that I've known since I was 5 and moved upstate.
See it doesn't matter because they all bring something to my table. They all fill my heart with their kindness, their humor, and their strength, these are some of the amazing women I am blessed with.
I learned a few years ago that not everyone you grew up with is still who you think they are and I have no time for drama or pettiness so I decided that I have enough great friends and I have cut them loose.
I've learned I don't have to deal with negative, petty, backstabbing "so-called" friends, when I have the real deal in my circle. So bye-bye, there's the door, don't let it hit you in the ass on the way out!
I tell my real friends how much I admire them. I tell them they are my heroes, and my role models.
I let them know what an amazing job they are doing, and how I am their biggest cheerleader. Yes, and I always tell them how much I love and appreciate them, all the time.
This is what we are supposed to do, this is what real women do, and this is what a decent human being does.
So today my friends, be thankful if you have a circle of women friends. Be thankful if you can pick up the phone and have someone talk you down from the ledge. If you have great friends then you are truly blessed, and never take that for granted.
I would like to thank all of my girlfriends and my "Soul Sisters" for filling my life with love, laughter, and a lifetime of memories...I love you all!!
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Starlit ✤ Venti
S t a r l i t
A/N: Astrolabe spin-off! This is Venti's journey with a dearly beloved companion, MC! Aka [Name]-
➸ Astrolabe (i) Star-taker (ii)
✤ she/her
Words: 4.2k
≿————- ❈ ————-≾
Years is a long time.
Forever is even longer.
For an Archon who can’t seem to find the curtain fall to his life, however, time is unchanging—yet cruel. He’s by no means an immortal, no, for even Archons erode like the nature in Teyvat.
The concept of erosion—an immortal’s death—does not faze him in the slightest. He does not fear death, per se, for it’s a release. He’s lived long, and he’ll continue to live longer with no visible end. At least for now.
Venti says he does not fear death and yet, he is afraid of something; legacy. Not quite his, no.
Why else does he sing the tales of the liberation of Old Mondstadt—if not to keep the legacy of his dear friend alive?
A timeless bard in the City of Wind, bringing about mellifluous ballads to retain the somber yet sweet memory of antiquity.
If he is to one day vanish in the wind like the wisp he truly is, who will be there to retell the history?
Surely, the three prominent clans—Gunnhildr, Ragnvindr, and Lawrence if they will cooperate—may continue, and perhaps there may be scholars who will write it down… but will they truly?
Sitting on the hands of the statue by the cathedral, Venti hums the ballad he’s known since forever.
The people of New Mondstadt… even in the eventide, they are as lovely and happy as ever, enraptured in the beauty of today—not yesterday. It’s relieving as it is encumbering.
They will keep his memory alive for years on end, but if he’s to disappear, who will linger to keep the story of his valiant friend? The bard who never came to witness the birds in flight.
Why, other than wishing for freedom as well, there is no purpose for his existence as an Archon other than to keep his—nameless bard—wish alive. Keep Mondstadt free.
For all years to come, so that it may never fall in the clutches of oppression… ever again.
But things are easier said than done.
Venti sighs.
It hasn’t been long—if you count decades as short—since the corrupted people from House Lawrence has been overthrown, and Vennessa has long since retired, Venti notes as he appears in Whispering Woods.
Now, at the center of peace, there should be solace for all.
But him… never.
Never to him.
Perhaps it is the anathema to his ‘immortality’; to carry the weight of history’s truth and to retell them forevermore without end.
For eternity will he be a bard whose voice shall never run dry, and whose lyre shall continue to emit nostalgia from yore.
He will be lying if he says it didn’t bother him, because it does.
Eventually, it gets tiring.
And with each descend of burn out comes the cruelty of erosion. He decides to sleep it all away, to prolong the inevitable—sometimes he just drinks wine.
“If only wine can wash away the burden of living.”
Living as someone who isn’t him—to continue wearing the face of someone who should’ve been regarded as the true hero.
Perhaps it’s the painstaking reminder that his friend from long ago used to caress his little frame with benignity amidst the turbulence of Old Mondstadt—no one will do so for him now, obviously—that incentivized light to swallow his figure.
To remember, Venti thinks as he feels himself shrink, to remember how it truly used to be.
Into a little wind spirit he’s back, floating with the help of his wing’s flutters. He floats down to the lyre he has kept on the ground, his tiny form resting upon the polished wood, emitting a sound of despondence.
If he focuses long enough, he can remember it… centuries ago… in Old Mondstadt..
And that is when a crystalfly much, much bigger than him flies by. A trail of the stars tails it behind—a surprising thing to see.
There are a lot of peculiarities in Teyvat, and little wind spirit has always been the curious kind. Why, it is the very curiosity that led him to the nameless bard.
So after dematerializing the lyre, Venti soars after the crystalfly.
Its luminescent glow appears like a shooting star within the forest, so tailing it doesn’t come off difficult—at least until it seemingly vanishes into the grass.
He comes atop the patch of land it has disappeared into, beady eyes distinguishing an odd device nestled in the green. How odd, it gives off a feeling of…
Venti shivers.
The stars.
He doesn’t know what’ll come to be if he messes around with such devices, but something feels like it’s reeling him in.
So, as gentle and meticulous as possible, he flies down, the white robe of his small form brushing against the iron—and immediately, the rule begins to spin.
The being that came into existence moments later has taken him by surprise, and for some time, they don’t actually talk to one another. Only the greetings, and then silence.
He cannot fathom her—once a being of the heavens—now confined to a measly round plate that can be easily thrown away.
"From someone who came from the stars.. you're quite different from them, aren't you?" the lonely bard says as he strums an equally lonesome melody.
The starry being at his side, with a glowing astrolabe at her lap, almost laughs in offense. To think that she's being compared to Celestia.
She shows him her palm, allowing a plethora of tiny constellations to float. If one peers close enough, they will see images of the past being reflected upon the sparkling stars.
"For a bard, you're rather rueful. Your ballads are old, still, you know each story like you've seen them with your own eyes," she notes how his tealish eyes lack a pretty luster.
[Name] resigns with a tired smile.
Seems like there's another tale that will fly by this bard's lips—only, it will be forgotten, unlike the rest.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Barbatos."
That was a long time ago.
He has gained an irreplaceable companion whose state of existence is as somber as her story, yet she stays at his side.
He does not know the exact reason why she chose to stay—it surely can’t be because he awakened her from a century-long sleep.
Together, they, ‘immortals’, watched as Mondstadt continue to prosper.
“Falling stars…” he comments once during a meteor shower when they are both sitting at the branches of the tree at Windrise, once a sapling, now an enormously grown tree.
“At the War, you used to descend them, bathing dark places with light.”
Venti’s eyes fall on the blank expression on his companion’s face, his whisper low and empathetic. “What happened to you, [Name]? How come you have fallen to this state?”
He isn’t acquainted with the deity from the stars, he never was—but he knows of her feats and acknowledged her presence when she stayed unmoving from neutrality during the Archon War.
[Name]’s answer is simple and understandable, more so to an Archon like him.
“Time changes things… and change can only have two fruits, empowerment or enfeeblement.”
A shadow looms over the Archon’s visage. He can see which fruit the deity had eaten, and unfortunately, it isn’t the good kind.
Then again, since when was this world ever good?
All good things are fleeting.
Three decades into their unexpected bond, the Archon gets an inkling suspicion about the girl’s lingering presence.
He doesn’t ask it aloud—if she sticks around because she’s like him, alone—but he does imply it through his questions.
He quickly finds out that it wasn’t the case.
“Pfft—” [Name] immediately stops herself from biting into the apple, “You’re not being discreet at all, and if you’re curious, you can always just ask. It isn’t a secret.”
He has never felt so defeated. He didn’t think acquiring an answer will be so easy… !
“Then what is it?” he prompts, leaning forward with an intense look in his eyes, unfiltered and raw, swarming with the desire to know—to understand.
Why are you here with me?
[Name] falters under his gaze—but catches herself just as quick, a darkening hue blossoming on her already pink-tinted face.
“I’m keeping you company!”
Deflating like a balloon, Venti sighs, falling onto the grass. He honestly expected some kind of grand reason, he doesn’t need to know the obvious. He has no need for a basic answer.
“That sounds lame.”
“I- heavens, I can’t with you.”
He bursts out laughing, sending the winds to push the [c]nette away when she makes a move to throw an apple in his direction. “Silly, you can’t possibly catch the wind—hey-!”
The giggles that leave morph into panicked shrieks as [Name] catches him by the cape, but her pull must’ve been a little too strong.
Because before they know it, they’re crashing down the hill, with the bard unable to conjure the winds he’s been bragging about a mere second ago.
His prior dismay over the ‘rudimentary reason’ was long forgotten.
If only he knew about the weight brought by such a simple reason…
Well… there’s still nothing he could’ve done.
“Tell me the reason why you can’t move on.”
“Ah?”
He nearly chokes from the sudden question, his teal and aquamarine eyes moving to inspect the lady at his side, who is already looking his way.
Her glass of wine is empty, but she’s showing no signs of intoxication. That is if she’s intoxicated to begin with.
Venti huffs, bemused.
“To think that you’ll start the young night with that kind of question…”
This night isn’t as ordinary, then, he deems to himself after taking a swig of his wine. The taste hasn’t changed at all—even if the years are drawing close to a century.
A century spent with the same starlit female at his side.
It’s been so long.
“You do not need to answer, Barbatos.”
He presumes that the last thing he can do is indulge her questions, no?
The Archon smiles, staring at the rich color of crimson in his glass. She never calls me by my vessel name. No, she talks to Barbatos, not to Venti.
[Name] does not speak to the face he has borrowed, she speaks to who he is; the tiny spirit existing within the embrace of liberated winds.
Perhaps that is the reason for the warmth in his chest as he gazes back at her eyes of [c].
“No, no, I’ll tell you.”
And tell her he did—the somber reason encumbering his existence. He didn’t bother with the history, not when he knows that [Name] is aware of everything.
The skies are a witness, after all.
And when he’s done, with empty bottles of wine resting by the roots of the tree at Windrise—having relocated their talk somewhere else—he feels… light.
He wonders why. In fact, he wonders for so long about it that he doesn’t hear the question sent his way, stammering an abashed ‘sorry, can you repeat that?’ when realization dawns upon him.
[Name] doesn’t look frustrated at him at all as she asks it once more.
“Are you feeling better now?”
Better is an understatement. He hasn’t felt this light in a long time—it is almost- no, it is cathartic.
The expression on [Name]’s face spells out her bewilderment. “Truly, you’ve forgotten that bottling those sentiments up will only destroy you.”
Then something else flutters in her visage; sadness.
“But you’ve had no one to spill those to, right?”
Venti doesn’t know he’s been swallowing dryly up until now, bewildered and appeased that someone understands. That someone listens—not to the face of a bard, but to the very existence of the wind spirit.
“You’ve also forgotten something,” he blinks out of his daze, his slurred ‘what? What did I forget?’ only prompting the [c]nette to chortle.
“That even if you share the same ideals as Zephyrus, your purpose now isn’t entirely for him.”
The stars are falling that night, lighting the sky with a vivid hue of azure and violet. Yet the light they carry is transient, much like the girl at his side—but he didn’t know that. Not yet.
When [Name] turns to look at him with starlit eyes, he loses grasp of his even breathing.
“Because in the beginning, you existed alone, for you, an advocate of freedom who lost himself in the memory of someone who isn’t him.”
She points skyward and he follows it with his stare, watching as the clouds part to uncloak a part of the evening sky. A constellation scintillates in the form of a winged figure, holding a lyre.
It isn’t uttered, but he feels it. That constellation—it’s his. Barbatos’.
“His has burned out long ago, and now he is a part of the stars themselves. He’s freer than you think, so do not feel sorrow for a death he wouldn’t want you to be blue over,” when he looks back at [Name], she is already smiling.
“That freedom you both achieved… is now yours and the people’s to savor. Your form now, albeit borrowed, is a simple keepsake.” He does not shy away from the hand on his cheek. “He is a Hero, but so are you. Keeping him alive in your memory is nice, but remember,”
Starlit eyes, Barbatos notes. The stars have always been cruel—Celestia is cruel—but the stars in [Name]…
“You too, are the embodiment of the history you’ve been singing. So do not cherish the freedom that he helped bring, instead, cherish the freedom that everyone brought— that you both brought.”
They’re kind.
Venti is admittedly, a lot better after that night.
The change isn’t quick to see, but he is changing—out of the chains of encumberment he has shackled himself with, into someone who is learning to hold onto those chains instead.
Not to clasp them onto his person, but to simply remember that he’s now free from the history that lumbered him down and see in the present day that he is now his own self.
Related to the tidings of the past, but now graced with the liberty to cherish the ideals he shared with a dear friend.
The smile on his face cannot be erased as he sings, tale after tale in front of a gradually growing audience.
What makes him happy—he doesn’t quite remember, but it’s not the sound of mora clinking into the hat he has laid down.
He surveys the crowd with a look of content, thanking the people who listened before picking up his hat, heavy with mora.
Venti beams, rushing away from the town square to head to the local bar. He feels like he’s missing something, but he doesn’t know what.
So oh, how thankful he is when the gruff-looking bartender brings a certain device to his attention. He has been enjoying a drink of rich red wine, enjoying the fruits of empowerment rooting from labor, when it slides across the counter.
“You left that here last night.” says the man before walking away, whistling as he wipes a wet glass dry—and the sight sends unexplainable fear in the bard’s chest.
An astrolabe.
He left it there? The bartender… could he have mistaken him for someone else?
Something urges him to pick it up—so he does, and the simple pulse of [c] is all it takes for the cogs in his head to start turning.
The rule isn’t spinning like it used to. Something whispers in his head, a voice of dread, a voice held back by fate as if it’s not meant to resurface at all.
And although painful—although it sears him from within, he forces, he claws through the haze to figure out why a part of him is so desperate.
To figure out how he’s feeling this way when seconds ago, he’s happy.
Unburdened.
And when he does—when he recalls a night from long ago, he drops the astrolabe as he shoots up, the chair tumbling to the floor.
“[Name].”
He’s gone from the bar a moment after the utterance of the name he swore not to forget, leaving the astrolabe behind in panic.
It’s been long since he openly used the winds to his favor, carrying him in the air as soon as he’s out of sight.
Where, he panics, where are you?
He doesn’t know—he doesn’t know and he’s now only holding onto the sliver of her name, but even he can feel himself slipping away from it.
All hope isn’t lost—for now—however, because in the firmament of the setting sun, he sees a star, scintillating as if endeavoring to get his attention.
Its placement in the sky shines above the area northeast of Mondstadt; Windrise.
The winds carry him to that direction like they have a mind of their own, and he lets them, trusting the element he’s lived with since the beginning of his time.
And to his relief, there stands, looking up at the statue, is the person he’s been looking for.
She turns to him before he can even land on the ground.
“I almost forgot you… again..”
Hurt becomes the dominant feature on his face when his feet touch the stone plating of the ground approaching his statue.
He can’t understand it.
Why?
“You didn’t come to me,” he hates that she is not looking his way, “Why didn’t you tell me? You promised—you promised you’ll remind me of you!”
Like you always did! He doesn’t say it. Because this isn’t the first time that I’ve forgotten you and you know it.
He can faintly recall, in the abyss in his head, the recurring times where he fails to find an answer to the hollowness in his heart, only for it to disperse when a certain [c]nette comes to him herself—and the memories come rushing back.
Only for it to vanish by the morrow’s sun.
And the cycle repeats.
“… We will just be prolonging the inevitable, will you continue to play an encore with someone who will eventually become a stranger? It’s been going on for too long. We’ve tried.” Is her bitter response.
We’ve tried and we keep losing.
Is probably what she’s supposed to add, but she has bitten her tongue to prevent herself from saying it.
He can understand that, because judging by the weight in his chest, he wasn’t—isn’t—fond of the deity’s fated departure.
Venti purses his lips. “Then let it be prolonged.”
The whirlwind of emotions inside him is beyond turbulent, he notices, clashing against the haziness in his mind that’s attempting to slink away the remaining knowledge he has of [Name].
It feels like he’s grasping at the edge of a cliff, clutching onto the last thing he has of an existence that’s bound to disappear.
Hoping for miraculous evocations to sympathize and bless him with memories.
But it doesn’t.
We have been in this cycle for years after that night, and each day, my memory of you continues to wilt for worse.
His heart aches at the thought. He almost can’t believe how hurt his heart is at this bitterness.
It is as if he has lo—
“Barbatos…” [Name] finally looks at him and he stops breathing for a second for two reasons; the increasing translucency of her lovely form, and the words that roll off her tongue.
“You no longer need me.”
He doesn’t know what compelled him to shout, “I do!”
But he lets it happen, anyway.
The starlit female whose figure is now close to becoming nonexistent, highlighted with an array of the stars, laughs a resigned laugh. “You wouldn’t be forgetting me if you do.”
He hates how it’s true.
His knees feel like crumbling under the desperation his heart is suffusing throughout him, but he doesn’t fall. Walking forward, slowly, he reaches his fingers out for the girl to take.
She doesn’t. Not anymore.
“Please, [Name],”
“It isn’t me you should be begging to,” she says immediately, the look in her eyes icy as if she too has tried begging, but has received no answer to her plea. “But don’t. They will not listen. Trivial things will be forgotten.”
“You aren’t trivial!”
“I like to believe that, too.” She lifts her stare, resigned as ever, towards the sky, “The moment the sun goes down, it is farewell.”
And that is the moment the Archon breaks. Falling to his knees in front of his own statue, in front of the person who has been with him for a century, he tugs at his hair.
The way he’s hurting so much is outstanding.
“You’re so selfish…”
To what degree-
“I wish I—”
To what degree has he fallen-
“I wish I never met you.”
-For him to ache and regret a meeting he would’ve gladly gone over a thousand times?
“Do not worry, Barbatos,” he sees her stepping closer with reluctance, as if even entering his personal space is a great deal for her to do, “By nightfall, fate will inscribe your mind to deem me as a nobody to you. I will be a stranger.”
He looks up, teary eyes clashing against starlit ones. “And… and you will..?”
She nods—to his complete horror.
“I will remember everything—all that is both vital and frivolous, I will remember.”
He bites his lower lip, visage cracking at the reality of it all. “It’s unfair…” It’s so unfair.
“It will not be when the sun sets.”
Something inside snaps. He does not know why, nor does he know where it came from, but he guesses it’s from how the girl speaks like she’s used to this. To being forgotten—to the pain.
And he doesn’t like that.
“Stop that!” he stands, genuine fury in his voice. “Stop deeming yourself unnecessary just because you’ll be forgotten, you are worth so much more.”
So much more, the voice in his head weeps. And you don’t know that.
The silence between them is loud, with only the heavens being their cruel audience. Its warm color of orange in sync with the sunset is beautiful, accentuating the warmth that flutters inside when he stares at her a minute longer.
Leaving her bewildered daze, [Name] smiles sweetly—gratefully.
“What the mind forgets, the heart will always remember.”
She pulls something from nonexistence, a trail of stars appearing with the object she has summoned above her open palm.
“You may not know me by tomorrow and by the following years, but I will leave this to you,” it’s an accessory, a pair of white feathers with tips dipped in pastel teal. “I hope you do not mind carrying another keepsake, Barbatos?”*
The tear he has been holding back finally slips down his cheek in acceptance. [Name]…
This is it.
This is their curtain fall—the end to a bond that’s never meant to last.
Barbatos accepts the items, his eyes never leaving the girl’s as he steps closer—and closer until the distance between them is almost nothing. He swallows, trembling hands reaching to caress the [c]nette’s cheek.
“Can I show you how much you’re worth, then? Please?”
The look in [Name]’s eyes is the only answer he needs.
And it’s the only answer [Name] doesn’t regret even when time has unfolded to unveil a new chapter in their lives that has since then diverged—but has once again reconnected.
After all, that answer from centuries past is the key to unlocking a feeling she didn’t know she’s capable of having; love.
A kiss—her first and most likely her last—that marked the ending of a history long forgotten to all, but not to one. Not to [Name].
So as she stands, with a new companion who has found her astrolabe, she can’t help but stare at the Windborne Bard coming their way, mind still fresh with the memories she used to share with the one and only.
“Oh, who might this be, Traveler~?”
The way he looks at her with newfound—yet so familiar—fondness clenched her heart, so she spends most of the time in the Outlander’s teapot trying to avoid the bard.
When it comes down to it, however, she realizes that she can’t avoid him forever.
In the end, she will still have to leave, and she’ll take this chance to actually see him for once.
Because she knows it deep down, they may never meet again.
So when Aether tells her that they’ll have to leave for Inazuma—not knowing they’ll come across a certain Harbinger—the starlit deity goes to search for the Windborne Bard. A farewell is in order, but the slip of the tongue occurs.
She always did call him by his Archon name, but right now, he doesn’t know of their previous connection.
So when he turns, eyes wide, he’s breathless.
“What did you just call me?”
He doesn’t know how to process the dismay in the [c]nette’s features, but he feels the peculiar urge to clasp the pair of feathers he has attached to his faux Vision.
“I said goodbye,” [Name] smiles, and he notices how that smile of hers is far from being mirthful. “Venti.”
She only said goodbye, the bard thinks to himself as the girl gives him one last look before leaving. Why do I feel… strange, then?
His heart hurts.
“.. Goodbye.” He responds in a whisper, but [Name] is no longer there.
≿————- ❈ ————-≾
“Goodbye, [Name].”
Barbatos once said after the reticent show of affection that would be forgotten by the next sun.
His hold on the starlit deity’s cheeks was trembling.
“Barbatos..”
He hopes to see her one day again.
“Goodbye, and thank you,”
He closed his eyes, linking his forehead to the girl’s, devastated.
“For a love that, in spite of not being remembered soon, will be cherished. Forever.”
The sun disappeared from the horizon.
≿————- ❈ ————-≾
a/n: *the two feathers that MC gave is a part of Venti's current design! if you look at his character, you'll see two feathers as an accessory attached to his vision.
Also, this was deliberately hurting, Venti's a comfort character but I also do not regret this- also yes, they had romance. Had. (sobbing)
‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Return to the Scrying Glass ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙
≿————- taglist ————-≾
@lehra @melkxsh @cringy-otaku
#venti angst#venti fluff#genshin angst#reader insert#genshin impact x reader#genshin imagines#female reader#ficlet#genshin impact#venti x reader
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